Musa's Princess Ball
by xxMazzy
Summary: Stella is not the only princess in the club. Musa's dad throws a princess ball for her after she graduates from Alfea. However, that is not the only surprise. Will her relationship with Riven survive yet another complication?
1. Last Day At Alfea

**_Disclaimer:_** _I do not own Winx Club or any of the characters in it. The only character in this story that I created myself is Richard._

_Anyway, please enjoy this story about Musa's princess ball and her arranged marriage to a childhood friend of hers._

* * *

"I can't believe it's our last day ever at Alfea!" Bloom sighed, "It only seems like yesterday I met Stella at the park back in Gardenia!"

"I know! You were so brave that day Bloom!" Stella smiled as she brushed her long hair. Bloom remembered how much younger they all looked on their first day at Alfea.

"Layla wasn't even with us then!" said Musa, "We should tell her all about it. That is of course, if she wants to know."

"I'd love to know, thanks! Tecna told me you got up to some pretty crazy stuff!"

"That is _totally _true!" Stella laughed.

And so the girls proceeded to tell Layla about their first year at Alfea. Bloom and Stella at first explained that day back on Earth, and then Musa, Flora and Tecna joined in to tell her about the first dance, their first encounter with the witches and their assignment in the swamp when they met the specialists. Stella wouldn't shut up about how her and Brandon had 'love at first sight'. Bloom said similar about her and Sky, even though in the first place they thought that Sky was Brandon and Brandon was Sky. Tecna even admitted her immediate crush on Timmy. Musa didn't feel comfortable about talking about Riven back then.

"Layla, you should of totally seen Riven then! He was even more grumpy than he is now! The fool even went off with Darcy! And to make it worse they were seen holding hands in the Hex Cafe!" Stella told her.

"Riven was under Darcy's spell then, Stella. Don't you remember?" Flora reminded Stella in her sweet voice.

"He was grumpy before that! Don't _you _remember when he fell in the river and we saved him and he was like 'Yeah whatever!'"

"Stella, I'd rather you didn't talk about that, ya know?" sighed Musa.

"Ahhhh Musa. What you don't understand is that there's a downer in every relationship! But in your case, perhaps a few downers."

Bloom glanced at Flora and bit her lip.

"And so you expect me to go up to Riven and go 'Hey shnookums! How are you?'?"

"No! That's Brandon's nick name! And I think that Riven would be the type to punch you in the face if you called him something like that."

"He wouldn't do that Stella. And you know it."

"Well I'm sorry if I have an opinion! At least he seems to have calmed down a bit since you saved his life like twice."

"Why are you being like this? I haven't done anything against you today."

"I am simply telling Layla about Riven's past! She wanted to know!"

"You don't know anything about his past Stella. And believe me, it aint pretty."

Musa stood up and walked out the room. Bloom, Flora, Layla and Tecna all looked at her.

"What did I say?"

* * *

Musa sat on the balcony. She remembered sitting there on The Day Of The Rose way back in her first year. Her feelings had been all mixed up then, and she was beginning to feel mixed up again. She had tried not to think about those rough times with Riven- it was typical of Stella to remind her. _Why does she have to do it? If only she knew._**(1)**_ S_he thought to herself. When Musa had told Riven about her mom's death and her upbringing as a princess by the kitchen maids and mourning father, Riven had confessed. He had grown up on the streets, teaching himself everything he knew. His mother had sold him away as a slave at an early age and he never knew his father. Luckily, he had managed to escape and became very skilled at fighting. His tough times had taught him to trust nobody, but his love for Musa had soon changed that attitude. He had been very lucky to get into Red Fountain.

Musa felt a rain drop touch her bare shoulder. "Funny thing" she chuckled. "The weather always matches my mood. I should be The Fairy of Weather, not music." She laughed at her little joke, even though it wasn't really funny at all. "Well, at least I have the dance tonight to look forward to. I should really go pick out a dress."

She stood up and went back inside. She headed back to their dormitory, only to find it empty. "They must of gone to Downtown Magix. I can't blame them though, they probably thought that I went there."

She walked into her and Tecna's room, and walked up the few steps to her little area. She put on her favorite CD, and danced alone while she rumuged through her wardrobe. She had many dresses from all their previous dances; her favorite was the beautiful gown that she wore to Stella's princess ball. She knew she couldn't wear a dress that she had already worn, and there was only one dress left. She pushed her T-shirts and jeans out of the way to reveal the back row of her wardrobe. Along with a few old tops hung her mother's dress. She had worn it to her last dance at Alfea. Musa felt a tear roll down her cheek. "Mom would of loved to see me in it" she sighed and removed from it's home of 3 years. She took off her clothes to try it on. "A perfect fit. This can only be coincidence." She stared at her reflection in their shared full length mirror. "I am _so _pale!" she said angrily, "It is a wonder anyone notices me around here, Stella stands out like a single bright star in the night's sky." She pulled a silly face at herself before she smiled. "Ah well. I don't want any guys to notice me, just Riven." She blushed at the thought of a load of guy surrounding her and her pushing through them to run in to Riven's arms.

Just then, her cell phone began to ring. She rushed over to look at the screen to see who it was. _Bloom has never said anything bad to me, why should I be angry with her? _"Hello?"

"Hey Musa it's me Bloom. I was just ringing to see if you were okay. Tecna has this totally amazing purple dress and Flora's about to buy a gorgeous pink one!"

"Sounds cool... I'm okay..." she hated to lie to her friends, even if it was over the phone.

"That's great! Stella was wondering if you wanted us to get you a dress?" _Oh that bitch._

"No thanks. I'm fine."

"Oh so you've got an outfit?"

"Now don't be nosey! You'll find out when you get back. I take it you're downtown."

"Yup. We figured you might of gone there, and Stella wanted plenty of time to find a stunning outfit for tonight. She thinks Brandon might propose to her, since her Dad proposed to her Mom on her last dance."

The thought of Riven proposing to her made her giggle.

"What's up Muse?"

"Oh nothing. I just thought of something."

"Alright then. I'll see you later! Bye!"

"Bye."

Musa put her phone down and sighed. If Brandon did propose to Stella, they would undoubtedly have the most glamorous wedding ever. Then it wouldn't be long until Sky proposed to Bloom, and in Flora's realm it was a tradition to get married exactly 2 months after you graduated. Then Layla would have her arranged and now wanted marriage to Nabu and Tecna and Timmy would have one of those wierd digital marriages they were talking about having later in the year. She would be left alone in the awkward situation of wanting to be married so much and at risk of her Dad forcing her into something unwanted. "Why am I always the one?" she whispered to herself.

* * *

"Musa, honey, where did you get that dress?!" Stella's voice rang through the room. Musa realized she still han't taken off the dress after she had tried it on.

"It's my Mom's. I was too sad to wear it before. She wore it to her last dance... I thought it would be nice for me to wear it too."

"It is simply wonderful! My dress is nothing compared to it! Most dark age outfits were like totally goth and hideous!" _Well at least she's being nice to me._

"Stella, the 70's were not the dark ages."

"Yeah yeah Tecna. Like you would now. They were actually the dark ages of fahion!"

"No offence guys, but this is a bit of a dumb conversation. Do you not think we should show Musa our dresses?"

"Bloom! That is a fabbity idea! Even thought Musa has the equivalent of one half and we have the other half between the 5 of us."

"I think that is the cleverest thing I have ever heard her say!" Tecna whispered to Layla, and they both laughed.

Bloom was the first to show Musa her dress. The dress was mainly sky blue and turquoise, but with a darker blue here and there. It was like a longer version of her enchantix dress.**(2)** "That looks amazing on you Bloom!" Musa complimented.

"Thanks! You look amazing too though." _Just like Bloom. Always returning the compliments._

At that point Tecna came into the room in a magnificent purple dress. Like Bloom's, it touched the floor, but it wasn't all layered. It was simple and tight fitted at the top with a thick hot pink belt around the waist. From there, it flowed out like a proper ball gown. "I've got a hair band the exact same colour as the belt!" smiled Tecna.

"That'll be groovy" said Musa.

"Yes, I think it will."

Musa smiled. Tecna had been such a good friend to her for 3 years. Even though she was best friends with Layla, she had always felt a special bond with Tecna. They told each other absuloutely everything, and stayed loyal to eachother by not telling anyone else.

"Watch yourselves girls! You wouldn't wanna miss this! Du du du dun! Ta daa! It's me! Princess Stella of Solaria!"

Stella strutted into the room in a sparkling orange dress. It was very tightly fitted to show off her figure with yellow spaghetti straps and paler yellow lace sleeves. It flowed out from the knee.

"I have to say that really is magical!" exclaimed Musa.

"And what else would it be?" Stella joked and smiled at Musa. "Listen... I'm really sorry about before. You know what I can be like. I guess I just didn't realize it would hurt you so much."

"It's okay Stell. You're still one of my best friends!" Stella and Musa hugged and then Bloom and Tecna joined them.

"Anyway, I still have to see Layla and Flora's dresses. In you come girls!"

Flora and Layla walked into the room in two lovely dresses. Flora's was pink and very formal and traditional. It had too replica rose buds on the straps and more on a thin pale green belt around the waist. The skirt part was the same pink but covered with a layer of paler pink lace. Layla's dress was the same colour green as her original winx dress. It looked a bit like the dress Musa wore to Stella's princess ball with darker green ruffles.

Stella clasped her hands together. "Don't we just all look fabulous?! We're going to be the belles of the ball! Our guys won't be able to stop staring! Their jaws are gonna drop!"

"Yeah but it's our last dance at Alfea. We've had so many. I never really appreciated them before" sighed Flora.

"Cheer up Flora! The school is going to be decorated by nymphs! It's going to look so magical!"

"And I have a special camera to take moving photographs with! We'll always have the happy memories!"

"Oh Tecna you're a genius!" Stella squeezed Tecna tightly. "I'm going to miss you all _soooooooo _much when I go back to Solaria tommorow!"

"Don't think about it Stella! We'll all still visit eachother!"

"Oh Bloom you're always so optimistic! Thankyou so much for being there all these long 3 years!" Stella let go of Tecna and hugged Bloom.

"Oh guys! Group hug!" They all joined in a circle with their arms around eachother. "We have to make this the best night of our lives! We must all have some fun and laughs at the refreshments stand, then we must all dance together and then with our boyfriends! Then we can all go off privately and have our own seperate make-out sessions!"

"Errrr... no" said Layla, and they all laughed in unison.

* * *

Sky was walking in circles with his hands behind his back waiting for Bloom at the bottom of the stairs and staring at the ground.

"Hey Sky they'll get here eventually. You know what women are like!"

"I know Brandon, it's just Bloom will be going back to Earth tommorow and I want to spend as long as possible with her."

"Why don't you just invite her back to Eraklion with you?"

"Brandon, you of all people know that my parents disaprove of her. They want me to marry Diaspro."

"Yes but they accepted that you're not going to."

"And yet they still don't want me inviting her to the palace and have her mingle with all the royal staff."

"But they didn't forbid you from it. I think you just need to give them some time to get to know Bloom."

"I'll think about it. But for now, I just wish she were here so that I could dance with her."

"Speaking of dancing, have you seen Riven? He's obviously eager for Musa to get down here, but he's denying it as usual. He never shows his true feelings much."

"Typical him then. I think he is seriously obsessed over her though. You must of seen the endless pictures of her in his room."

Brandon thought about the wall covered with photos of him and Stella in his room. "I wouldn't call it obsession... just maybe true love."

Sky laughed. "Riven? Can you imagine the crazy adventures?"

Brandon thought very hard. "Yes actually. I can see them both playing pranks on people in Downtown Magix."

"I'm not even gonna ask where you got that from."

"Stella and I saw them laughing like loons in a shop window on one of our outings."

"Why were they in a shop window?"

"Pretending to be manikans and pulling stupid faces at passers-by. That's obviously what you mean 'crazy adventures'."

"Riven in a shop window? That has got to be a sight worth seeing."

"I tell you it was. Riven made me swear I wouldn't tell anyone... Oops."

"I won't tell anyone, don't worry."

"Sky look! The girls are here!"

Sky looked up to see the six Winx Club girls walking down the steps in six amazing dresses. "They_ all _look beautiful."

"Don't they just?!" laughed a geeky voice behind him. He turned his head to see Timmy, Riven, Helia and Nabu standing behind him.

"I hope they bother to dress this well for your dorky maths marriage or whatever it is."

"I'm sure they will Riven!" Timmy laughed again.

"I think it might be necessary for you to calm down before Tecna gets down here" said Helia, not even looking away from Flora.

Meanwhile, Riven was just staring at the beaming Musa coming down the stairs in a wonderful dress with her friends. He had never seen her look so amazing before. Her newly long hair was down and perfectly straight with small plaits on either side.

Brandon pointed out Riven to Sky and they both laughed uncontrollably.

"Hey Sky" said Bloom in a flirtatious voice as she put her hands on his shoulders. He put her hands on her hips and smiled. "You look amazing as usual Bloom."

Stella and Brandon squeezed eachother as their customary greeting. "Oh Stella" he whispered, "You really are the most magical girl I have ever met."

"Oh shnookums! You are the nicest guy I have ever met!"

"Hi Helia" said Flora shyly, "The stars are pretty tonight, huh?"

"Yes, but not as pretty as you." He kissed her on the cheek and she blushed the colour of her dress.

"Hello Timmy! Did you remember the camera?"

"I sure did Tecna! We can capture this magical night and watch it again and again and again and again!"

"Heya Nabu. How've you been?"

"I've been well Layla, and you?"

"Same. I've been looking forward to tonight for ages."

"The same here. You look... very nice."

"Thanks."

"Hi Riven" Musa said nervously. She hoped her nervousness wasn't noticeable.

"Heya Musa."

She smiled weakly at him. Their greetings were always difficult.

"Your dress is very nice."

"Thankyou. You look, handsome, in your outifit."

Riven looked at his feet and then back up into Musa's perfect blue eyes. All of their friends had gone off dancing, even Layla and Nabu. "Do you want to dance?" he asked quickly. Musa smiled and nodded. He took her hand and lead her onto the dance floor with everybody else. He had learnt a lot of things on the streets, and dancing was one of them. He used to watch the couples at the outdoor ballroom but he had never expected himself to be in this position.

They danced for a good 15 minutes before Musa said: "Come with me. I have to show you something." She grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the twirling dancers. She took him up the steps and inside the school. She lead him down several corridors and up some more stairs, along some more corridors and then they stopped at two large doors. "You're not supposed to be allowed in here, but we won't get caught since all the teachers are outside." She opened the door and they went intside the room. "Welcome to our dormitory!"

Riven looked around the large lounge are. It had 4 more doors leading into more rooms. Musa pointed to the first door. "That's Stella and Layla's room. The next room is Bloom and Flora's. The third is our bathroom and the last is mine and Tecna's room. Come and have a look."

The two of them walked in. "So what is it you want to show me?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Well, the room. It's the last day that I'll spend here and I thought you might be curious."

He smiled that wicked smile and then walked towards her, closing the distance between them. He pulled her right to him and she looked up awkwardly. He smiled the same smile before he pressed his lips against hers. She seemed to be enjoying it until he put his tongue to her lips and she broke away.

"Riven... I... I... I..." she stammered and then began kissing him again. He broke away this time.

"You what?"

"I... I love you."

He glanced away nervously. There was only one thing he remembered his mother saying, 'I told your father I loved him, then I took all he had and left him!'

"I love you too Musa... You are... So beautiful."

Musa blushed bright red and smiled. He smiled back at her and they started to kiss again. She let him put his tongue in her mouth.

When they finally stopped, Musa looked at the clock across the room above Tecna's bed. "God, we've been up here half an hour! We better get back down- we're missing the party!"

They rushed back outside and went to get some fruit punch at the refreshments table. Bloom and Sky were there.

"Hey Musa, Riven! Where have you two been? You've been gone for ages!"

"Nowhere really. I was just showing Riven something."

Bloom looked at them suspiciously. "What were you doing?"

"Wow Bloom! What ya tryin' to say? We weren't doing anything like _that_! I was just showing him our room!"

"Our room?! Why?"

"I only showed him my stuff. Do you really think I was let him in your bedroom?"

"Of course not Musa! I just don't see why you would want to take him up there. It's only girl stuff."

"I just wanted to show him where I lived for three years."

"Okay then." Bloom and Sky went back to dancing.

"Bloom believes everything you say."

"I know. She really trusts us. I didn't really lie to her though. She was suggesting that we did _it_."

"Most assuredly not!" Riven laughed, "Not until after we graduate."

"That's tonight, moron."

"Exactly."

Musa shook her head in fake disgust and they went back to the dance floor.

It was ten minutes until midnight when Ms. Faragonda began the Graduation Speech. "It has been a long 3 years for our seniors, but tonight their journey at Alfea will end. They have been among our most sucessful students ever, and have helped our school through it's most difficult times. We have done our best to make this night a magical expierience for them; but now it is time for the most important part. Can all of the Alfea seniors please come up."

Bloom, Stella, Flora, Tecna and Layla went up with all the other seniors. Riven eventually let go of Musa's waist and she walked up to join her friends. Ms. Faragonda read out all of their names. Then Proffesor Saladin announced for the Red Fountain seniors to also come up. He then read out all of their names. The girls and guys were all handed their Graduation Scrolls, and Ms. Faragonda read it out to them from a copy. Then everybody fell silent as they listened to the chimes of the clock tower. Once the twelth chime struck for midnight, the whole school errupted with cheering. The winx girls got together in a group hug.

"Can you believe it girls?! We're offically fairies! I'm not just the sun and moon fairy- I'm _The _Fairy of the Sun and the Moon!"

"And I'm The Fairy of Flowers and Plants!" smiled Flora.

"I'm The Fairy of Music!" laughed Musa.

"I'm The Fairy of Everything Digital!" Tecna beamed.

"I'm The Fairy of Liquids!" Layla said.

"And I'm just the dragon fire fairy" sighed Bloom.

"What do you mean Bloom? Now you're The Fairy of the Dragon Fire!"

"I can't be Stella. You can't be a fairy of something if you don't even have a realm."

"Bloom, even though your realm is destroyed, it's still there and so it's still a realm! And if you can't class Sparx as a realm just say Earth is your realm. I be you'll be the _only _fairy of Earth!"

Bloom smiled at Stella.

"Stella!" Brandon was pushing his was through the bustling crowd to get to the girls.

"Shnookums!" she exclaimed, and forced her way through the crowd to brandon. The girls watched as they kissed.

_Huh? Riven and I kissed betther than that before we graduated._

"I can't believe we've finally graduated. Now Stella, you really are my princess." Brandon reached into his pocket and brought out a small box. He showed it to Stella and then he opened it. Inside, was a small gold ring with a large, glittery topaz on it. "Stella, my love, will you marry me?"

"Stella looked as if someone had just given her all of the clothes in the universe for free. She jumped up and wrapped her arms around Brandon. "Yes Shnookums! Yes! I will marry you!"

Brandon took the pretty ring out of the box and slipped it onto Stella's finger. He put his arm around her shoulder and they walked back over to the girls. They all congratulated them and then Musa snuck off to find Riven.

"What was all the commotion over there about honey?"

"Oh. Stella and Brandon got engaged."

"Cool. When's the wedding?"

"I have no idea. You don't sound very excited."

"Neither do you."

"Ah well... Anyway... You guys are leaving now..."

"Yes..."

"I'm going back to the Harmonic Nebula tommorow. Where will you go?"

"Sky's got me a temporary place in Eraklion."

"Okay then."

"Come on Riven! Say your goodbye! We haven't got all night!" Brandon and Sky yelled from a few metres away.

"You better go."

"Just one last thing!" he shouted back. He place his hands on her hips and kissed her. They ended after a few minutes.

"Goodbye then Riven."

"Goodbye Musa. I love you."

He let go of her and jogged over to Brandon and Sky, who were now laughing and wolf-whisting.

Musa watched them until they were tiny specs in the distance, and then she went inside to go and get some well-needed sleep.

* * *

_**(1) **Whenever there is a sentance in intalics, it is what Musa is thinking._

_**(2) **If you do not know what Bloom's enchantix looks like, I am sure you will find it on google images._

_So I hope you liked the first chapter. The next one (A Royal Announcement) should be up here in the next few weeks. Normally it would be quicker but since it is Christmas I won't bw on as much. I also hope that the chapter was long enough for you, my old ones were far too short and most didn't even have 1000 words!_


	2. A Royal Announcement

_Well here is the second chapter, 'A Royal Announcement'. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the last chapter. For all you Musa/Riven fans, this chapter has a little bit about their relationship, however it's mainly just about Musa's first 2 days back home. _

_I do not own Winx Club or any of the characters. I only own Richard, Danny and Annie._

_Please R&R. xxMazzy_

* * *

Musa awoke early the next morning; she was still very tired. She looked around the now empty room at the 5 suitcases at the bottom of her bed. Tecna was still snoring lightly away on the other side of the room.

"Wow. I'm leaving today. After 3 years..."

She reluctantly climbed out of bed and opened the smallest suitcase on the top of the pile. She stared at the photo frame lying on the top. It was a picture of her and Riven. They took it in a photo booth on one of their dates. She was sitting on his knee and beaming at the camera, he was kissing her cheek with his arms around her. "I am never going to see him again" she sighed. She didn't even feel like rubbing the tears away.

Carefully, she placed the photograph back in it's place in the suitcase and zipped it up closed again. Then she went and sat on her bed, closed her eyes and remembered how Riven's kiss had felt when they were sitting in the same place last night. Her tears kept falling. Stella and Brandon were going to Solaria together to make preperations for their wedding and their taking over of the kingdom. Sky had invited Bloom back to Eraklion and they were going on the same ship as Stella and Brandon. Layla was going back to Tides with Nabu to have their private wedding (they could only invite members of the family). Tecna and Timmy were from the same realm anyway and they were going back together to visit Timmy's parents. Flora and Helia's realms weren't far from eachother so they were going to Flora's realm first to pick up her sister Rose and then they were taking her to Helia's realm to visit Helia's little brother. Musa sighed again. It really was her that was always left out. Riven was going to Eraklion with Bloom and Sky and she was left to go home by herself; back to her lonely father who was still mourning Musa's mother after 15 years.

Suddenly Musa jumped as her cell phone started beeping. She went over and picked it up to read the text. It was from Riven. Musa couldn't help but smile as she read it.

'Heya Musa. We're off now. Bloom and Stella told me to tell you they've left you all presents in the lounge. We have to leave early to get to Eraklion while it's still light. I won't be able to text you again when we leave Magix, and so this is my final goodbye. I just wanted you to know this. I have loved you ever since the first day I met you. I loved the way you blushed and shuffled your feet everytime you saw me, I loved the way you acted tough and didn't let me see your true feelings. I loved the way that you still believed in me even when everyone else had given up. And now, I love you even more. I love the way you speak nervously every time we meet, I love the way you smile everytime we speak. I love the way you laugh at the simplest things when I'm around. Basically, I love you, and I will never stop loving you. Ever. This may be goodbye for now, but I will come and get you. I don't know when, but that's a promise. I love you. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx'

It was the sweetest text that he had ever sent her. Pity it had to bring on them parting for him to send it. She decided to go check out the presents that Bloom and Stella had left. She went through into the lounge. It looked so empty, like it did on their first day at Alfea. The only things, other than furniture, left were 10 wrapped gifts on the coffee table. She strode up and picked up the 2 in red wrapping paper. She was right, they were for her. One from Bloom and one from Stella. She opened the present from Stella first. Inside there was a golden photo frame with a picture of her and Stella in it. She lifted out the photo frame to find another smaller box. She put the photo on the sofa and opened the smaller box. Inside, was a neclace with 3 hearts hanging down from it. Each one was encrusted with several small garnets and rubies. "It's beautiful" Musa whispered. She put Stella's gifts back in the box and proceeded to open Bloom's. Bloom's also contained 2 gifts. One was a pair of rainbow striped socks and the other was a bracelet to match Stella's neclace. Musa began crying again and picked up the 2 presents. She took them through into her room.

She found out that Tecna was now awake. "Good morning Musa! Sleep well?"

"Nah."

"Neither did I... I have something for you."

Tecna handed Musa yet another wrapped gift in purple and green checkered paper. Musa unwrapped it to find a photograph that moved. It was of her and Tecna way back in their first year doing a stupid dance in their dormitory. "How did you get this one to move?" Musa asked.

"With a little help of magic and my new camera. I used a (very difficult) past vision spell and had only a few seconds to get the camera ready quickly... It took me all night."

"Thankyou. So much." Musa hugged Tecna with the photo still in her hand. "It'll be wierd not having you around" she confessed, "I'm used to waking up and seeing a mound of pink hair sticking out from under the duvet on the other bed."

"Haha... yes. I think everything will be so quiet on weekends. I'm used to having your music blasting while I work on new inventions over the internet with Timmy."

Musa giggled. "Yes... I'm really gonna miss you."

They hugged again for about 5 minutes before Tecna handed Musa 2 more gifts. "Give these to Flora and Layla, I'm going to send Bloom and Stella's by magic post. It takes a long time, but they'll get them in about a month."

"Okay Tecna."

Tecna gave Musa one last smile and then picked up her 3 suitcases. She whistled a wierd little tune and then vanished in a puff of purple smoke.

Musa checked the time on her cell phone. She had one hour to make it to the inter-realm teleport before it closed for the day. "I better get going" she said to herself. She put Tecna's gifts on the coffee table with Bloom and Stella's and then left her own gifts for Layla and Flora aswell. She then gathered her bags and said goodbye to the dormitory. She left the room and walked down the corridors of Alfea for probably the last time. She made sure to look at all the paintings and look out every window to see all the views. Before she knew is she was at the gate. She turned around and sighed. "Goodbye Alfea." She then headed off down the road to Downtown Magix.

* * *

"Musa!"

Musa looked up to see her dad rushing down the palace steps to greet her. "Dad..." she said with much less enthusiasm than her father.

"I have missed you so much!" he exclaimed as he hugged his only daughter.

"I missed you too Dad."

"Yes, it's good to have you back princess."

Musa nodded and they began to walk back up the steps together.

"How have things been?" Musa asked.

"Pretty good actually. Nothing bad or strange has happened recently. Did you know Princess Galatea's gone to Alfea?"

"Yeah, I met her there."

"I always said she'd do well."

"Yes... you did."

"Honey, you're not yourself. I thought you would be please to be home again. Whatever is the matter?"

"Well dad, I have just left my home of 3 years and all of my friends."

"Yes but aren't you glad to see you're old dad?"

"Of course I am. I just want to spend a few days alone if that's okay?"

"Well if you really want to, you can. Dinner tonight is at 6. I have a very special announcement that I'm sure you'll be very happy about!"

They entered the palace and Musa smelt the familiar smell. She sighed as she walked up some huge stone stairs to go to her bedroom. It was exactly the same as it always was, except it had obviously been cleaned bye one of the members of staff. She sighed and began unpacking her bags. She put all of her clothes into her wardrobe and all of her make-up, perfumes and jewellry on her dressing table. She put her stuffed toy rabbit on her bed along with two red heart-shaped cushions and a rug on the floor. She stuck all her paper junk on her bulletin board and put the photo of her and Riven on her bedside table. She put the photo from Stella and the picture from Tecna on her dressing table also. "I guess it's back to the simple life from now on" she sighed.

(I wouldn't exactly call living as a princess a simple life either!)

Like her father said, Musa went to dinner at 6. The table was filled with enough food for more than 20 people, never mind two. "Wow Dad. Why so much food?"

"Well since it is a very special occasion, all of the staff are going to eat with us tonight."

"Oh well then. Okay."

One of the maids smiled at Musa as she put the last plate down on the table and everybody sat down around the table.

"Right, I shall make the announcement before we eat," Musa's father began, "About 11 months ago now, Musa, you told me about Stella's princess ball. I have never really given you much as a princess. Well, next Saturday will be an even more special occasion, because I have organized a princess ball for my little princess!"

Musa was in a state of shock. _Oh my god! Me? I am going to have a princess ball!?_

"Oh my god Dad... thankyou!" Musa hugged her father. "And can I invite all of my friends???"

"Well, no."

"What? Why ever not?"

"Because I have already invited them."

"Oh Dad you really are exceeding your standards today! Thankyou so much!" Musa hugged her father again. "Are you sure you invited all of them?"

"Well I sent 2 invites to Tides, 2 to the 3rd Vector of the Bianary Galaxy, 2 to the 5th Moon of Marigold, 2 to Solaria and 3 to Eraklion."

"Yes that is everyone! I'm so glad you are my Dad!" Musa hugged her Dad yet again. She was so happy, it was the best thing he could give her. She was going to have her own princess ball, and all her friends were invited!

Back in her room though, she was having second thoughts about the whole thing. Stella's princess ball was ruined- what if the same thing happened to hers? And what if Stella got jealous if Musa's ball went perfectly? And what if Riven didn't come because Sky's parents wouldn't let them go? Maybe it wasn't going to be that good after all. They only had until until Saturday to reply, was that enough time? Probably not. "Oh Dad! You have tried to do something nice for me, but it'll probably just all go wrong!" she sighed and started to cry for the 5th time today. Tecna said that you could only cry 32 tears at a time. She was bored, so she counted them herself.

"32... 33... 34... 35..." she sobbed and sniffed. "I guess I'm just not normal." She continued counting until she got to 56 and stopped crying.

* * *

The next morning Musa awoke on top of her duvet and still in her clothes. She sat up and looked at the time- 8:30AM. One of the staff would come in with her breakfast soon. She went over and sat at her dressing table. She stared at the photo of her and Stella. Right now, Stella would probably be asleep in a huge four poster bed with her 'Shnookums' Brandon. She wondered what Riven would be doing now. If he was in Eraklion, they were an hour ahead so he would probably be eating breakfast with Bloom, Sky and the King and Queen. Well, at least they were living similar life styles.

"I wonder, if they have even recieved the invitation yet" she said to herself. It was unlikely, unless her Dad was really stretching the limits and got first class delivery. That was practically impossible.

Just then Annie, one of the kitchen staff, entered her room with a silver tray. Musa turned her head to look at her. "Sorry... I should of knocked."

"No Annie, it's fine. In fact, I would really love your company."

"Well I'm afraid I've got a lot to do today. Your father wants us to make an absuloutely massive cake for your princess ball."

"I expect to see you dancing with Danny at the ball" said Musa, smirking.

"Oh no your highness!"

"Don't call me that, please."

"Okay Musa, the staff will not be allowed to dance at the ball! And why would Danny dance with me?"

"He likes you... well he did when I was last here."

"What do you mean?"

"He was staring at you. That can only mean one thing."

"What? He was thinking 'yuck what an ugly beast'?"

"Don't be silly Annie. You know he likes you."

Annie blushed. "No; I must stick to my job Musa. Enjoy your breakfast." She smiled and then left the room, closing the door behind her. Musa began to eat her breakfast- toast and jam- and thought of all the things going on in her life. Not many things, but the few things were quite big. First of all, she still couldn't get over the fact, she was going to have a princess ball. Secondly, all of her friends (hopefully) including Riven were all coming to her realm and staying for a whole week. Lastly, the staff would be doing practically all the work for the ball and weren't even allowed to take part. "I will invite them. It is _my _ball."

She changed into some different clothes and left the room. She knew exactly what she was going to do today. She was going to randomly wander the palace and do all the things she used to do. Then she was going to ask Annie is she wanted to do some late night shopping. If not, she would just go by herself and check out the latest records from her favorite bands. Hopefully at least a few of her friends would of replie to the invitations by then.

**

* * *

**

_Well I hope you enjoyed chapter 2! I know that it's shorter than chapter 1 but does it really matter? Please R&R and tell me if there is anything you think I should do. I got this done quicker than I expected and the complete chapter 3 (The Best Present Ever) will be up as soon as possible. Thanks for reading._


	3. The Best Present Ever

_Wow! I seem to be updating this thing much quicker than I expected! Thanks everyone for your positive reviews and thanks to everyone's small suggestions! I will now spell out my numbers! E.G. I will now write 6 as six. Also I'm going to finish all my chapters before I put them up!_

_Anyway, you know all the usual disclaimers. Enjoy!_

* * *

Musa had returned from her rather boring shopping trip. Annie had been far too busy to go with her so she went downtown by herself. She had thought that at least she could buy some new CD's but was unsuccessful. The shelves were filled with CD's from loads of new singers and bands that she had never even heard of. "I really need to catch up" she muttered under her breath as she walked down stairs to dinner.

Her father was standing behind his chair at the table waiting for her. "So at last you decide to show up."

"I'm sorry Dad. I got lost..." she lied.

"Got lost in your own home? Musa you're a clever girl- I think it's about time you stopped moping. I don't see why you are still upset if your friends are coming here on Saturday _and _you're going to have a princess ball."

"None of them have replied yet. They probably haven't even got their invitations."

"Don't be miserable darling. I actually have six replies."

"What? Really?"

"Yes. Flora, Helia, Tecna, Timmy, Layla and Nabu."

"So they're all coming?"

"Yes... Your friends in Eraklion and Solaria are yet to reply."

"I noticed."

They didn't speak at all for the rest of the meal. Musa tried to eat extra quickly so that she could go back to her room and try and contact Tecna. Her quickness worked and she was soon finished and placed her knife and fork neatly on the plate. "I'm finished Dad. I'm gonna go upstairs to... try and plan my outfit to the ball."

"Hmmm? Don't you want a brand new dress?"

"Yeah, of course. I'm just going to think about the kind of dress I'd like." Lying to her father was easy. She'd never admit it, but she was an excellent liar. Her excuses often got her out of inconvenient situations. With her fathers permission, she left the table and headed back up to her room. She passed Annie on the way. "'Evening Musa. Did you enjoy your dinner?"

"It was alright" Musa said truthfully.

"Well I hope the ball dinner will be good enough for you. At least _some people _know what you like." Annie winked at her and then went off down the stairs. Musa liked Annie. She was a nice person and actually, a good friend- her only real friend in the current same realm as her. _How sad. More than one million people and I can only class one as my friend._

Back in her room, Musa managed to dig out her old red laptop from the bottom of her wardrobe. Remembering a spell Tecna had taught her, she sucessfully got it up and running. Tecna would be the only person she'd be able to contact, but she could get her to send messages on to other people, including Riven. She opened up a special program and typed 'Hello Tecna', hoping that the pink-haired fairy was online right now.

She waited a few minutes and then some writing in fancy purple text appeared on the screen. 'Hello. Who is this?'

'It's me, Musa.'

'Oh Musa! Yay! Hiya!'

'Hi.'

'What you been up to?'

'Not much really... well... I'm going to have a princess ball.'

'I know! It's gonna be so awesome! I really can't wait!'

'Have you heard from Stella or Bloom recently?'

'I'm afraid not. I could try and get in touch with them if you like.'

'Please.'

'Yeah. I'll be sure to notify you if I find either of them.'

'Okay. Thanks =)'

'Your welcome. ;D'

Musa had a long conversation with Tecna, until Tecna had to leave. Her and Timmy were going out with Tecna's parents. She really did envy them. If only Riven was there with her now. She wouldn't care about a princess ball or feeling lonely. She wouldn't even care if she had to go and live on the streets to be with him right now. Her heart was torn. If she ran away, it wouldn't be the first time- but could she make it to Eraklion by herself on foot? As soon as she was noticed to be missing only the whole kingdom would be looking out for her. _And Stella enjoys this kind of life! _she thought. The palace was so big though... if she was quick she might just be able to make it to the border of The Harmonic Nebula and escape to the 'wild place', which was just a huge stretch of miles and miles of pretty much nothing- impossible to find anyone in. She began to rumage in her wardrobe for her rucksack and found it easily. She chucked the red and navy bag on her bed and pulled out two spare T-shirts and two pairs of jeans. She opened one of her drawers and lifted out a huge stash of chocolate and snacks. She put them in the bag with the clothes and placed in two magazines, a torch and a pencil. It would take her, she thought, about two weeks to make it to Eraklion. She zipped up her rucksack and put on her red trainers.

* * *

The next morning she lifted the bag onto her shoulders and exited the room. She crept along the corridors and down the stairs and she sucessfully reached the entrance hall. She cast a spell on the doors and they swung open. She went outside into the cold early morning mist and quietly closed the doors. "Well... here I go" she muttered under her breath. She ran down the stone steps and out of the palace gates. "The taste of freedom" she muttered again. She walked peacefully along for about half an hour listening to all the sounds in her realm and it all became so much noisier as she was now downtown. She walked through the streets, a few people said 'Good Morning' to her but they didn't suspect a thing. After about 10 minutes, she thought she saw some people that looked like her friends. _Nah, they're all in their own realms. I'm probably just hallucinating cuz I'm hungry. _She opened her bag and took out some potatoe chips and began to eat. The five friend-resmembling figures were getting closer and closer.

"Hiya Musa!" Flora giggled.

Musa looked up in shock and saw her five best friends looking down at her (she was sitting on a bench). "What are you doing here?!"

"We came as a surprise!" exclaimed Stella.

"We want to buy our dresses from your realm" said Bloom, "And Stella wants to check out the Harmonic Nebulan fashions."

"Oui" Stella nodded.

"The boys have stayed back in our realms and aren't coming until the actual day of the ball" Layla told Musa. She hoped that they didn't notice her face fall at the thought that she still wouldn't be seeing Riven until Saturday.

"But they're all definitely coming?" she questioned.

"Obviously!" Stella seemed to be in a hyper mood, "Do you think our boyfriends would miss the chance to dance with us girls, and do you think Riven would miss _your _princess ball? For God's sake Musa! He came to mine!"

Musa smiled. Now she knew for sure that she would be seeing Riven on Saturday.

"So are we just gonna sit here and watch Musa think boring thoughts about Riven or are we gonna go spend, spend, spend?!"

"Calm down Stella! Musa's the only one of us who knows the way around this place, and so we have to wait for her."

"Sorry," Musa apologized, "I'm just lost in my own world!" She stood up. "Come on- the dress shop's this way!"

Musa lead them back through the streets of the Harmonic Nebula until they came to a small dress shop with three beautiful dresses in the window. The one on the left was green and the one on the right was yellow and the one in between was a white wedding dress that Stella couldn't stop staring at. "Come on Stella!" whined Bloom, taking hold of Stella's arm. "I thought you wanted to get a Solarian style wedding dress!" She managed to drag Stella into the shop with the other four, and found that she couldn't stop staring at the wonderful dresses on display. "Oh do I have to get a dress from Solaria?" Stella moaned.

"If you want to please your parents, yes" Bloom replied.

"Yeah, well you're lucky to get the dress you want in your size," said Musa, "It's the only dress shop in the whole kingdom."

"Wow! They must be like... zillionaires or something!"

"Well done Stella," chuckled Tecna, "I finally found out that you can do a bit of math after viewing three years of you apparently not being able to."

Layla and Musa giggled along with her. "Where did you get this sudden burst of humour Tec?" said Musa in between laughs.

"After three years with you and Stella, I kinda picked it up."

They turned to face Stella only to find she had ran off to look at the dresses.

"Do you think we should join them?" asked Layla, and Tecna and Musa nodded.

They spent a long time admiring the handy-work of the shop owners, until they all found the perfect dress. "Guys have you seen this dress?!" Stella exclaimed, holding up a long glittery pink dress to herself. She twirled around and they watched as the dress spun with her. "I _cannot _leave it!"

She yanked one of her many credit cards out of her pocket and strutted over to the till with the dress. "Size four please!**(1)**" she said to the assistant. The assistant smiled. "You're in luck Princess Stella."

"You know me?"

"Sure I used to work in a dress shop in Solaria."

"Oh my gosh! You're Gemma, aren't you? It's been sooooo long! I never expected to find you here!"

"The world is full of surprises your highness."

"Yup... anyway. I'm in luck, huh? So bring me the dress!"

Gemma handed Stella a small card that said 'Spella McKartney Pretty In Pink Size 4' on it. Stella gave her the credit card and Gemma took the money off. "The shopper is over there" Gemma said, pointing to a machine against the wall that looked like a photo booth. Gemma gave Stella back her credit card and Stella walked over to the 'shopper'. She put the card into a slot and walked inside the 'shopper'. She walked out around ten seconds later with a huge bag saying 'Boutique Magique' on each side.

"Tadaa!" she burst out, "I have officially bought the dress! Woohoo!"

"Yeah Stella and it's gorgeous, but we still need to find our dresses" implied Flora.

"And now I've got plenty of time to make sure you all choose the right dress!"

* * *

Four hours later they were all back in Musa's room with their new dresses. Bloom had bought a turquoise dress with a slit almost all the way up of one leg. It was tube top but then with baby blue lace straps. She had also bought some light blue gloves that came up to just below the elbow. Flora had a pink dress but a much less brighter pink than Stella's. It was also tube top but with a sort of lace T-shirt over it. She had a pearl neclace and two pink pearl bracelets to go with it. Stella had her hot pink glittery dress and had also bought some faux roses for her hair and a golden neclace with a pinky coloured gem stone encrusted onto it. Layla had a green dress and a creamy white feather boa with some emerald coloured earrings and bangles. Tecna had bought a purple and green dress that seemed to change to different shades whenever she moved. Musa had taken the longest to choose her dress- she really wanted something special. At last she found a metallic red dress that was tube topped and tight fitted all the way to her knees and then fanned out resembling a mermaid tail. She had red silk gloves that went up to her elbows and she was going to wear her neclace from Stella and her bracelet from Bloom.

"We all look fabulous in our dresses! I'd say even better than at the last dance!"

"You would Stella" joked Layla.

"No, seriously. I think that we all really do look great."

"Awww thanks Stella" smiled Bloom.

"Yeah, normally we think your compliments are a bit... fake" Musa admitted.

"But we can see you definitely mean it this time" Flora assured her just in case another Musa/Stella argument started.

They spent the rest of the day going crazy and playing childish games like 'Hunting For Witches'.**(2) **Musa introduced her friends to Annie and she joined in for a while until she had to go back to making preparations for the ball. They then all ate a special dinner with Musa's father before retiring to Musa's bedroom for the night. They had a couple of pillow fights and then decided to play truth or dare. "Now remember" whispered Bloom, "Nothing we hear or say in this room will never be said of or heard of again outside of this room."

"On our graves we sware we will never tell" they said together.

"Right. Who goes first?" asked Layla.

"I think Musa should go first, since it's her house" said Flora sweetly.

"Okay then!" Musa said happily, and looked at Stella. "Stella. Truth or dare?"

"Ugh! I knew you'd pick me! Truth."

"Haha I wanted you to say that!"

Stella jokingly slapped herself in the face.

"Out of all the boys, including Nabu, say the order that you like them in starting with the one you like best."

"I can't say that! I'm dating Brandon!"

"Too bad you have to."

"Alright, fine." Stella took a deep breath. "Well obviously I like Brandon the best- he's so handsome and kind. Second... well I like Timmy second best but only because I think he's sweet and he's saved our lives countless times on board the ship. Thirdly, and I'm totally gonna regret saying this, but thirdly I like Riven. Even though he's a big grump and seriously annoying I think he's actually... quite good looking." She tried to ignore the stares and open mouths of her five best friends. "Anyway, fourth I like Sky. No offence Bloom but I think he's wierd and he's a bit dorky really and kinda reminds me of a guy from a kid's fairytale or something. Fifth I like Helia. I think he's too quiet and what's up with his hair? And I like Nabu the last just because I don't know him well enough."

"W-O-W" Layla said each letter. "I was expecting it to be like Brandon, Sky, Helia, Nabu, Timmy, Riven!"

"Well I had to tell the truth! If you weren't all my best friends I probably would of said that!"

"Well at least we know you're telling the truth. You would of never said that as a lie."

"Okay Stel. Now it's your turn to truth or dare someone."

"Right girls, you better be ready cuz I dare you all to say what stage you've got up to with your boyfriend!"

"What? You can't do that!" protested Musa.

"Of course I can! I just told you something I should never say aloud!"

"Okay, but only if you say what stage you've got up to first" said Bloom, surprisingly calmly.

"Fine then! Me and Brandon have got up to tongues and some upper body activity. Bloom?"

"Just tongues" Bloom replied, obvious by her tone that this was the truth, and besides, Bloom would never tell a lie to her friends.

"Flora?"

"Five minutes without a break."

"Tecna?"

"Open mouth. No tongues involved."

"Layla?"

"Erm... a goodnight kiss" Layla blushed very much, after all, she was a newcomer to this kind of thing.

"God Layla you're boring! And you, Musa?"

Musa knew that she was blushing probably the reddest she had ever blushed. "Tongues..." she drifted off. How would she put the fact that she had beaten Stella?

"What else?" Stella pushed her on, getting frustrated.

"Errrrr... a bit of upper... and errrr.... lower body activity."

"Musa! I am never going to get that picture out of my head!"

"You wanted the truth" said Musa, blushing even more.

"And you still haven't done the full monty?"

"No."

"Well what a relief. That would of been an even worse picture!"

Musa was relieved that her friends weren't making too big a deal out of it.

"Well it looks like our girl Musa is officially at the highest stage."

"Yeah. Well anyway, whose turn is it now?"

"I was going to say whoever's at the highest stage apart from me but that's Musa and she's just had a turn."

"Just let her have the turn. She deserves it after admitting something like that."

"Oh alright. Musa, it's your turn, again."

"Okay. Truth or dare Tecna?"

"Truth."

They went on playing truth or dare for another half hour. It was mostly truths but with a few crazy dares on Stella's behalf. They decided to turn in for the night, since it was getting late and they were all very tired.

Musa was the only one still awake. She lay in her bed staring into the darkness. There suddenly was a strange buzzing noise. _Tecna's laptop _she immediately thought. She got up out of bed and was careful not to trip over her sleeping friends as she went to fetch the laptop from the other side of the room. She picked it up and went back into bed. She opened up the laptop, which she found out was on. The special chat program was on and there was some text on the screen reading 'Hello who's there?'

Musa typed in: 'It's Musa.'

'Musa! Just who I wanted to talk to! It's me, Riven.'

'Riven! Hi!'

'How are you babe?'

'Fine now you're here ;D'

'Oooooeerrrrrr'

'Stop it. I've really missed you.'

'I missed you too. I really wanted to come with Bloom and the others, but they said it was only girls allowed.'

'Kk'

'Listen, I love you, but now I have to go. I've nicked Timmy's laptop and it won't be long until he notices. I've got something for you when I get there *wink wink*'

'Oooooo naughty boy.'

'Bye! xx'

'Bye...'

Riven was gone. Musa proceeded to put the laptop back. She got it back sucessfully but stood on Stella on the way back to her bed. "Musa? What are you doing?" she yawned.

"I was just... checking my E-mail."

"At this hour?"

"Why not?"

"Hey Musa. I'm sorry we didn't bring your presents. The boys are bringing them when they come on Saturday."

"No, no, Stella. It's perfectly fine. You guys are the best present anyone could ever give me." And with that, she lay down, shut her eyes and fell into a peaceful dream about Riven.

* * *

**_(1)_** _In an episode in Season 2 Stella says 'I can say do you have this in a size four in fifteen different languages.'  
**(2)** 'Hunting For Witches' is just a random game my cousin and I made up when we were like five. It's just like hide and seek except the person who's on is the hunter and the people hiding are the witches. When you get found you have to try and run and hide again but if the hunter catches you you are caught and can't escape._

_So there you have it, three chapters in four days! And for all of you, have a great christmas and I'll see you next year! (LOL that's only like six days away!) _

_The next chapter is the one you've been waiting for, The Princess Ball._


	4. The Princess Ball

_Happy new year everybody! I hope 2008 was good to you all. I'm back with the next chapter of Musa's Princess Ball, and it's the one you've been waiting for! Remember to R&R, and enjoy this chappie!_

* * *

"Oh come on Musa! Get up!" Stella whined, hitting her blue-haired friend with a pillow.

"It's 6AM Stel, why do I have to get up so early?" she yawned, and shut her eyes again.

"Exactly Musa! That means you only have thirteen hours to get ready for your princess ball, and if you want to see the guys before hand, then you only have eleven!"

Musa groaned as she sat up and swung her legs out of bed and shuffled her feet into her slippers. Reluctantly, she stood up and looked at Stella. _If looks could kill, she'd be dead right now._

"Ugh! Musa! You need a lot of work to look perfect for tonight! You just have to be difficult, don't you?"

"Don't you think we should keep it down? Everyone else is asleep."

"They can deal with it. It's your princess ball- they'll understand. Now... before we begin, just a little something you should know. It'll take all day for me to get you ready, so don't expect to eat until the ball."

"Great" muttered Musa sarcastically.

"Well I'm glad you're not too bothered. Now, let us begin." Stella told Musa to sit on the stool at her dressing table so that Stella could work on her hair. "So what sort of style were you thinking?"

"Ummm... I don't know... Something new and unique?"

"Hmmmm... I think I know just the thing!" Stella began to brush Musa's long, navy hair. Musa glanced upwards as Stella combed her bangs back off her face.

"Stella? What style exactly do you have in mind?" Musa questioned- she hated having her forehead showing.

"Wait and see. Patience is a virtue."

"What's up with you Stella? You keep on saying clever things" Musa chuckled.

"I'm not an Alfea fairy anymore."

"Well none of us are."

"Exactly my point. At Alfea, you can be young and crazy, nobody really cares. Now, as the official Princess of Solaria soon to be the queen, I have to act more mature."

"I don't act mature..."

Stella cut her off, "Well you aren't soon gonna be the queen of this place, are you?"

"I'm having a princess ball."

"Yeah, well who's the king?"

"You don't have to have a king, Stella."

"Yeah but you'd be a pretty lousey queen by yourself. Like in a game of chess- if there's no king, the queen has no job to do protecting him."

"I wish I'd had a camera then- that is the smartest thing you've ever said! I didn't know you understood chess!"

"Well I don't understand all the little prawns..."

"Pawns, Stella."

"Yeah them. All I know is the pieces have to like... defeat the pieces of the opposing player to protect the king."

"Yeah, that's pretty much it."

"Yes Musa. You should really not be so stereotypical about me."

"I didn't say I was."

"But you _are_."

"Hey... what's up?" Bloom yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"I'm getting Musa ready for her princess ball!" beamed Stella.

"Already?"

"We only have like ten and a half hours until the boys get here!"

"That's ages, Stel."

"Not if you have to look perfect! This has to be the best night of Musa's life!"

"I already had that."

"Oh be quiet Musa- this is going to be better!"

It took Stella a grand total of two hours, twenty-seven minutes and forty-nine seconds to do Musa's hair. Surprisingly, all six of them were very impressed. Musa's bangs were held off her face with a glittery silver tiara pushed forward slightly to make a sort of hill out of them. Her hair had been curled to look naturally wavey and tumbled just past her shoulders.

"Who needs a hairdresser when you've got Stella?" joked Layla.

"Nobody" Stella joined in, obviously she didn't get the joke.

"Musa you look really nice" Flora complimented, "If only Stella had time to work on all of us."

"As soon as I'm finished with Musa I'll be making myslef look fabulous- sorry guys. I could give you some advice though."

"That would be great" smiled Bloom.

"Good for me if you've got anything possible to do with my hair!" laughed Tecna.

"You'll be easy, Tec. You wear your hair like that all the time so I'll easily find something new for you! Anyway... now I need to start work on Musa's makeup!"

Musa only took an hour and a half(!) with Musa's makeup. She 'had' to get eyes both perfectly matching and got a lot of help from Tecna, who pointed out the hidden mistakes. Eventually though, she got it perfect. Musa's lips were now a bright shade of red. Her eyelids were covered in a light shade of purple and were surrounded by a neat line of black eyeliner. Stella had spent twenty minutes just applying the mascara to make Musa look one hundred percent fabulous.

"Alas, my work is done," Stella announced, "Well on Musa anyway."

"You don't have enough time to make yourself look as perfect as this" Musa replied.

"Fear not my friend! The other night while you were snoring away..."

"I _don't _snore."

"Whatever. As I was saying... The other night I had no sleep because I did my makeup for the ball then. It took me hours but it meant I would have plenty of time to work on you today."

"What do you mean?"

"Just watch. You are obviously primitive to makeup magic."

Stella held her hand up beside her face, closed her eyes and clicked her fingers. Makeup swept over her face like it did when they transformed into their enchantix. She now had coral coloured lips and gold eyeshadow. "Voila!"

"You must teach me that spell, Stel."

* * *

At last they were all totally ready for the ball. The boys were due to arrive in ten minutes. Bloom's hair had several plaits in and was in a high ponytail similar to the style she wore for Stella's princess ball. Layla had completely straightened her hair, as had Stella. Flora wore her hair in tight ringlets and Tecna had one single plait on one side.

"When I said we were going to look fabulous, I didn't realize we'd be this fabulous!" Stella exclaimed.

"You sure are correct Stella!" Tecna agreed.

"Come on you guys! The boys will be here any minute!" said Bloom, and they all rushed down stairs to the entrance hall where they stood talking and waiting.

The boys arrived after a few minutes and the girls all rushed up to hug their boyfriends.

"Hey Sky" Bloom said flirtatiously and gave him a peck on the cheek. Layla and Nabu hugged, so did Tecna and Timmy. Flora and Helia kissed as did Stella and Brandon. Musa walked right up to Riven. She didn't feel awkward. She didn't feel anxious. She felt happy. She felt complete. He took her hands in his and she let his lips meet hers. She didn't care that her friends were right next to her- she was the happiest she had ever been. She didn't even break away when Riven deepened the kiss and slipped her the tongue. It was only then she realized she had her eyes closed the whole time. She opened them and glanced to the side. _What a surprise._ Her friends were all staring at them. If she wasn't completely trapped in the facial department she would of just told them to stop it, but with more serious language, so all she could do was stick her middle finger up at them.

To Musa, the kiss lasted nowhere near long enough but when they finally broke away Stella didn't look too happy. "You just had to keep us waiting, didn't you?"

"You were the one staring. You didn't have to watch."

"Well it's more interesting than keeping our eyes closed!"

"Stella, it's really no different to when you kiss Brandon" Layla pointed out. Stella rolled her eyes.

"Anyway..." Bloom interupted, "Come on guys! Just one hour and a half until the ball!"

* * *

That hour and a half passed slowly, but eventually the ball was beginning. All the guests had arrived and were waiting in the ballroom. All of them minus Musa were waiting at the bottom of the huge staircase Musa would be walking down. The sound of trumpets echoed throughout the room. "And know her highness Princess Musa of the Harmonic Nebula will make her grand entrance!"

The whole room fell silent as everyone turned to watch Musa walk down the stairs. She walked slowly and gracefully, emphasizing every step as if to draw it out to make the whole thing last much longer. Her dad joined her at the bottom and took her hand, leading her up to the crowd of people. "Now let us all make this night special for our new queen." He let Musa go and she walked up to her beaming friends. "I don't think I've ever seen such a glamorous walk-down-the-stairs!" laughed Layla.

"Well I had to make a good impression!" Musa giggled.

"And I think you did." Riven complimented, placing his hand on her shoulder. "You look more beautiful than ever tonight."

"Thankyou" she whispered.

"And now the future king of The Harmonic Nebula will make his grand entrance!" The trumpets blew again. Several people gasped, Stella being among the loudest. The trumpets sounded again. "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Prince Jared!" Everyone stared as 'Jared' walked down the same stairs as Musa had- but it wasn't just any Jared. It was the Jared that Musa met in her second year of Alfea. The Jared Stella had set her up with. Riven looked at Musa, who looked as shocked as everyone else. When Jared reached the bottom, he didn't look nervous like he should, he looked proud of himself as if he just accomplished something great and beaten someone else to it.

"Let us start the ball with the ancient tradition! The new queen will dance with her soon to be husband!"

Jared forced his way through the crowd to Musa, who was holding her head down like she was ashamed of doing something scandalous. Jared forcefully took her hand and lead, well, dragged her onto the dance floor. He took her other hand and forced her to dance with him. Riven made sure he didn't take his eyes off Jared and noticed a two tears escape from Musa's eyes.

"This cannot be happening!" Stella exclaimed quietly, "I mean, the cheek of it!" Riven sighed. "I'd kill that bastard if I got the chance" he replied sternly.

They watched anxiously as Jared twirled Musa round again and again and again. It seemed like forever, but eventually the music stopped and they were allowed to stop dancing. Jared wanted to continue, but Musa pulled her self away with great force and walked back over to Riven, Jared, unfortunately, close behind her. "I am so sorry!" she said, and burst into tears. She wrapped her arms around Riven and he did the same to her. "There there, my love..." Jared began, reaching out to snatch Musa away from Riven, but she was too quick. She pushed Riven away and slapped Jared hard in the face. He clutched his cheek in shock, and the people around them gasped. Musa's dad broke his way through the crowd. "Musa! What are you doing?!"

"What have you done, dad?! I don't want to marry him! I'm in a relationship!"

"Well you never told me that."

"Yeah! I would of thought the pictures in my room might have given it away!"

"Well I'm sorry Musa! It is too late! You'll be married to Jared this time next week." He turned his back on her and walked away. She had been fiighting back the tears until then, and she started to cry again.

Riven looked at Jared, who had a smirk on his face. "Sorry Riven- she's mine." Jared pulled Musa away by the waist and tried to kiss her, but then Stella hit him over the head with her shoe. "That's for coming here in the first place!" She hit him again. "That's for taking Musa away from Riven!" She hit him again. "And that's for trying to kiss her!" Jared sat on the floor clutching his head. "You'll pay for that one bitch!" He jumped up and was about to lash out at Stella when Musa jumped in front of him. "Jared don't!" she exclaimed, and winced at the hint of eagerness in her voice. "Please don't hurt her!" Jared lowered his arms and sighed.

"Now... why don't you go have a sit down?"

"Okay, whatever." Jared pushed his way through the crowd still clutching his head with one hand.

"Well I think he got the picture!" Stella laughed.

"It's not funny Stella..." Musa sighed, "I have to marry that... that... that... monster..."

"Cheer up Musa." Riven hugged her and she buried her face in his chest. "I can't marry him" she moaned.

"You can't, and you're not going to."

"How can you say that when to you it is ovbious that's a lie?"

"You'll think of a way out- as always."

"Yeah but..."

"But what?"

"Never mind! We have a point to prove!" Musa took his hand and lead him behind a curtain and up a few spiral staircases. "Hang on a minute Musa... wasn't the announcer dude here just a minute ago?" Riven questioned.

"Precisely! The announcer has a microphone, and I'm gonna announce in front of everyone that I can't marry Jared!"

"And how is that going to work?"

"Just wait and see baby!"

Musa turned around to face a small table covered with bits of paper and rubbish. She picked up a pathetic looking microphone and tapped it three times with her finger. The whole room fell silent for the third time and everyone turned to stare at Musa.

"Well... hello people... of The Harmonic Nebula! I know that you know who I am and if you think this whole Me/Jared thing is great... well... you can get stuffed since I am _not _going to marry him!" Everyone gasped, well, everyone except Musa's friends. "I am not gonna marry him because I am in love with somebody else!" Musa dropped the microphone and turned back to Riven. "Help me out on this!" she hissed before literally thrusting herself at him and slipping her tongue in his mouth. He broke away for a few seconds, though not noticeable to everyone else. "What are you doing?"

"I'm proving the point!" and she started kissing him again. She sat down on the table but kept Riven standing and emphasized her movements as she stroked his chest. The room was filled with gasps and murmurs, they probably thought Musa to be very disrespectful. She, however, couldn't care less. She was not going to marry Jared. This was, after all, her life. She could of gone on kissing Riven for hours but then she heard footsteps and her dad was there. She broke away and tried not to glare at him with hate. "What the hell are you doing now Musa?!" he half yelled, half whispered. "I am so ashamed of you! Come back down now! The ball is over!"

"But..."

"No buts Musa! I tried to do what's best for you, but if you're going to act like this then you don't deserve it!" He took the microphone and told everyone that the ball was ending early and that they should go home.

* * *

Musa sat on her bed with Riven, crying. Their friends had left them alone for a while. "It's not fair Riven! My life is ruined!"

"Don't say that Musa. You can still have a nice life, even if you have to marry Jared."

"But I won't just have to marry him! I'll be expected to bare a child with him and everyone will want to know every little detail about everything!"

"Listen... Musa... remember how I told you I had something for you the other night."

Musa sniffed and nodded.

"Well... I'm afraid I can't give it to you now..."

"Why not?"

"Well... because... because... Musa. I was going to ask you to marry me."

* * *

_Well there you go! Sorry, I know it was a bit short, I had terrible writer's block. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it and remember to R&R!_

_xxMazzy_


	5. Only Way Out

o_Hey guys- I'm soooooooo sorry for not updating in like, ages. I hope that this chapter will make it up to you. I know it's a bit wierd... but, enjoy it anyway!_

_xxMazzy_

* * *

Musa awoke tired and groggy the next day. Her head was spinning and she could see dancing gray dots in her eyes. She rubbed her face with one hand and ran the other through her long, midnight hair. Then she remembered.

"Oh shit!" she said, slapping herself in the face. What was supposed to be the best night of her life had turned into one of the worst. Her 'loving father' had arranged her marriage to Jared and she'd discovered that she could of been marrying Riven. She felt her eyes water and tears trickle down her face, and then she knew that she had to do something.

She through her duvet on to the floor and leapt out of bed. Grabbing a purple bobble, she tied her hair up and slipped her feet into her red, fluffy slippers. It was still early, so luckily nobody would be up around the palace, therefore she could sneak to the library in peace.

The route was surprisingly familiar, seen as she hadn't been here for a good few years. The library was a room that she had hardly visited, but she knew that what she was looking for was there- the Harmonic Royalty Code. Arranged marriages were pretty traditional, but Musa was entirely aware that there were ways out of them. Those ways would be written down in that book, and if Musa could pull one off, she could say bye bye to Jared and hello again to Riven. She crossed her fingers and prayed to her mother for good luck.

* * *

The library was one of the biggest rooms in the palace. It had two large oak doors that lead into it, and no windows. It was lit dimly with rose scented candles that cast bewitching shadows on the magical walls. The walls were a deep red from one angle, but if you tilted your head slightly they would appear a strange shade of purple. The wooden floor was very reflective, and made from the wood of a magical tree that demanded wisdom and quietness. The book shelves were made from the same oak as the doors and shelved thousands of books, about all different things and both ancient and modern stories. There was no librarian, so Musa did not have to worry about getting caught.

When she entered the room, it didn't take her long at all to find the book; it was on display on a pedestal next to what would have been the librarian's desk. It was a very big book, with yellowing pages and a red leather cover. The title of it was engraved in gold on the front. The book could only be read by royalty of The Harmonic Nebula, and as Musa touched the book she was filled with a strange sensation as it recognised her magic. The book opened itself, and on to the page that Musa was seeking. Musa read:

_'When marriage is arranged, it has to be fulfilled, as long as there are no other circumstances. If the bride to be is not eligable to marry the chosen prince, then the marriage cannot fall through. A princess would be ineligable if:_

_**. **The marriage arranger was to pass away before the wedding._

_**. **The princess was already engaged to be married to someone else._

_**. **The prince was from the same realm as she was._

_**. **The princess was bearing the child of another man, before the marriage was announced.'_

Musa sighed. Riven had wanted to propose, but he hadn't got there quick enough and now it was too late. Jared definitely wasn't from Musa's realm, and she couldn't bear to think about her Dad dying so young. He was only in his fifties. That meant that the only option left was the last, and in a way, the hardest to pull off. Musa exhaled heavily. Could she do something like that? The plan was already forming inside her head, but would it work? And was she brave enough? She had little self belief.

* * *

By breakfast she had already made up her mind. It was the sight of Jared that convinced her. No way did she want to be stuck with him for the rest of her life, and she shuddered at the thought.

Nobody spoke over breakfast, but Bloom kept giving Musa awkward glances and Flora was miming 'Are you okay?'

After breakfast, Musa dashed upstairs and pulled on some blue skinny jeans and a black T-shirt with The Rolling Stones logo on it. She pulled on her red converse and left her hair in the messy up do she had pulled it into earlier. She didn't tell anyone she was going; she didn't want anyone to know. In her mind it was going to be a very quick trip, and nobody should have noticed that she was gone by the time she got back.

Nobody saw her as she left the palace and ran as fast as she could down the steps and away from the place. It didn't take long to get into the town streets, which were surprisingly empty. It was quite a dull day and some of the many neon lights were still on. Normally the dance club lights shining would have tempted Musa, but not today. She knew exactly where she was headed.

The health clinic was at the back of town not far from the proper hospital. Musa was pretty friendly with one of the nurses there, who had attended the same first school as Musa. She walked through the door and the girl looked up from the counter. A huge smile spread across her face. "Musa!" the girl exclaimed. She rushed out from behind the counter towards Musa to hug her, which was a good thing they were the only people there, otherwise they might have gotten some funny looks.

"Selena," Musa beamed. "It's been a while."

"Woah, I know!" Selena replied, and paused. "How was Alfea."

"Oh Selena it was AMAZING! It such a beautiful place and the teachers are..." Musa stopped. She didn't have time to tell Selena all about Alfea, at least not today.

"Selena, I'll tell you all that later, but right now I have a problem, and I need your help."

Selena looked confused. "My help?"

Musa nodded. "Please don't think bad of me Selena, but I'm sure a lot of people would feel the same. I take it you know the news from my princess ball?"

"Oh. The news about your... arrangement?"

"Yes. And well... well, I really, really don't want to marry Jared. I was kind of... already in a relationship with someone."

Selena was still looking confused, and Musa sighed. "Well I don't want to marry Jared and this morning I looked in that book 'The Harmonic Royalty Code' and now there's only one way for me to stop it and I need your help to pull it off."

Selena still wasn't getting it. "But Musa, what are you going to do?"

_Musa_ sighed again, and could feel herself blushing slightly, as she usually did, when the topic of conversation lead to Riven. "I'm gonna get myself pregnant. With Riven, my boyfriend."

Selena was taken a back. "And why do you need _my_ help?!"

"Because it will only work if I was pregnant before I knew about the arranged marriage. I need you to fake test results. Say I got pregnant the last night at Alfea."

"But how is that gonna work? Aren't people going to know that you were there with them the whole time?"

"No Selena, because you see, I wasn't. That night I showed Riven my room, because I wanted him to see where I had lived for three years. We were up there for a good half hour, which could of mean enough time to... you know. And that could be my excuse. I've thought it all through carefully."

"Yeah... but Musa, I mean. Are you sure you're ready for this? To go through it all? It's hard work you know. And do you not think it's a bit selfish to bring a child into this world, for nobody's sake but your own?"

"Not really... because it will be worth it for the kid. I think that the kid'll think that too, seen as if I didn't, they wouldn't have ever existed. No, the only thing I'm worried about is Riven."

"Why in the realms is that the _only _thing you worry about?!"

"Because I don't know if he'll be up up for it. The kid thing I mean. It's kind of a lot to ask... I think I might put a spell on him..."

"No way! I'm not helping you Musa!"

"What? Why not?"

"I am not going to let you trick your boyfriend into having a kid with you, then letting you bring a child into a world of such darkness and then lie about it to your father!"

"But Selena! Hey... what do you mean darkness?"

"Well, what do you think? All the wars and stuff? Baltor returning... duh."

"Oh, that stuff. But it's all over now anyway."

"Ugh... well it might be one reason down," Selena admitted, "But I'm still not helping you."

"Alright. How about I only do it if Riven agrees himself. And the more I think about it a kid would be nice. If it was a girl, I could name it after my mother."

"Gee, I don't know Musa..."

"Selena! All you have to do is change a date on some papers!"

Selena looked as if she was considering something that was really difficult to decide on. She was. She pondered for about two minutes, and then said: "Oh alright. I'll help you trick your boyfriend and fake..."

The door swung open, and a woman carrying a little boy walked into the clinic. The boy coughed loudly. Musa turned back around to look at Selena. "I'll see you later then," she said. "Tommorow probably."

Selena nodded and went back behind the counter to greet the new arrivals, and Musa left the health clinic, smirking.

* * *

Musa was whistling 'Eh Eh (Nothing Else I Can Say)' as she climbed up the big stone steps to what was now rightfully her palace. Her hands were tucked in the pockets of her skinny jeans. The guards were now outside the doors, that were now open, rather than locked with spells. "Hey guys it's me," she told them, and with a quick glance, let her through without asking any questions. That was certainly one of the things that Musa liked about the guards.

She found her friends in the huge sitting room of the palace. They were all there- Layla, Bloom, Tecna, Flora, Stella, Brandon, Sky, Timmy, Helia, Nabu and Riven- watching some movie on the cinema-sized screen. Tecna seemed fascinated by it.

"Have you seen the size of it? Imagine the magic energy that you could get if you broke it down?"

"I'm surprised you haven't got one yourself, Tec," Musa said and everyone turned to stare at her. Obviously, they hadn't heard her come in, and they probably wanted to talk to her and get her to answer questions.

"Musa!" Stella exclaimed. "Where have you been?! We've been waiting all morning for you, you just dissapeared after breakfast!"

"I was... getting ready." She glanced at Riven, who, today of all days, was looking even grumpier than usual.

"Oh come on Musa!" Stella whined. "I'm not stupid you know! I know it doesn't take _that _long to get 'ready'."

Musa then remembered that her hair wasn't brushed and was tied up in a ponytail, a style which she never woar. She had no make-up on and was wearing an over-sized band tee and old skinny jeans, and battered converse. Compared to Stella, who was wearing denim shorts and a metallic orange vest, and sky-scraper Gladiator's, she wan't really 'ready'. Stella also had her face covere din foundation, mascara and glittery eyeshadow, with her lips shiny enough to see your reflection in. Her hair was down and tumbling all the way to her waist, but with some of her layers curled.

"Well maybe our definitions of 'ready' might be different..." Musa suggested awkwardly.

"Never mind," Stella went on. "Tell us everything!"

Musa plonked herself on the squishy red couch and Stella dived to site next to her. Layla sat on her other side, with Tecna next to her, and Flora and Bloom knelt beside the couch in front of Stella. The boys shuffled in next to their girlfriends, all except for Riven, who sat on the arm of the couch looking grumpy.

"So what do you want to know?" Musa asked.

Stella groaned. "Everything! Like how you feel, if you plan to wriggle out of it, blah, blah, blah."

"Okayyyyyyy. Well I think it's pretty obvious that I don't want to marry Jared. To be honest, I can't believe that my Dad has done something like this. I mean for God's sake, he's met Riven!"

"Maybe," Sky said, "Riven gave a bad first impression. It wouldn't be the first time." He laughed, and Brandon joined in.

"And it won't be the last!" Brandon jokingly punched Riven in the arm, but Riven didn't even flinch. He didn't even attempt to hit Brandon back and he didn't say anything.

Musa, who was the only one who knew why Riven was upset, quickly continued to draw peoples' attention away from him. "And at the minute I have no idea how to get out of this crap, so I was kind of hoping that you guys might have some ideas?"

"You could always run away," Layla advised. "I used to think about running away a lot when I was younger and wanted to get away from things."

"And you could come and live with me!" Stella burst out, "And we could play makeovers all day!"

"Actually that would be completely ilogical," Timmy explained.

"As soon as they realised you were gone, the guards would come after you," pointed out Tecna.

"Maybe there is no way out," Helia said calmly.

"There's always a way," Bloom said, and patted Musa's hand. "You just need to believe in it. Look at me. I got my enchantix in a way that people didn't even think possible."

What Bloom didn't know was that Musa already had a way out, and was planning to take it into action that night.

"This conversation is a bit miserable," sighed Flora. "Why don't we talk about something more cheerful? Like Stella and Brandon's wedding?"

"Oh yes!" Stella beamed happily. "We've already decided we're going to have the biggest cake in Solarian history, with baby pink icing and decorated with edible yellow roses! And it's going to have rasberry jam and the interior is going to be the softest, fluffiest and tastiest available!"

"And the plates are going to be real pure gold, and the cutlery pure silver," Brandon smiled.

"And there's going to be balloons and streamers and live music and the whole ballroom's gonig to be redecorated!"

"What about your wedding dress, Stella?" Layla questioned.

"Of course I haven't got that yet, girls! I'm going to go out and buy it with you! It's going to be the most perfect and pretty one that I can find!"

"You don't need an amzing dress for you to look beautiful," Brandon said and kissed Stella. Stella giggled, but stopped and her expression became grave. "Oh Musa. If you can't get out of this mess then we're going to have to plan _your _wedding. I think maybe it should still be gorgeous, even if it is to Jared." Surpirsingly she said his name with disgust, since she was the reason that Jared ever met Musa, but then again, Musa's father had been unaware of that incident, and really it could have been coincidence that their marriage was arranged.

"Oh Musa! I'm so sorry!" she confessed and started crying, head in hands. Brandon put his arms around her and said "Shhhh, shhhh. It's not your fault honey."

"No it's not Stella," Musa promised. "Dad didn't even know that I knew Jared, and Jared liked me before you set us up. I think he wangled his way into it by coming to see my Dad. Really it's my fault. I never told Dad properly about Riven."

"It doesn't matter," Layla admitted, and everbody stared at her, even Riven. "It doesn't matter, because we are going to get Musa out of this."

* * *

Musa was in her room. It was five to ten at night, and Musa had told Riven to meet her in her room at ten. Her heart was beating quickly and she had butterflies in her stomach. It was the feeling she got when she was on a rollercoaster and it went downhill at top speed.

There was a knock on her door. She glanced at the clock on the wall- it was ten o'clock.

"Come i-in," she tried to say with dignity.

Riven walked into her room and shut the door. "What is it Musa?" He seemed concerned.

How could she explain? "Well. Riven. You know that... that I don't want to marry Jared?"

"Yeah," he scowled.

"Well... there's this book... called the Harmonic Royalty Code. It has the rules of arranged marriages in it. The... the only ways out of it are if my Dad died before the wedding- which really I do not want to happen. Or if before I knew about the arrangement I was engaged... which I'm not, so that's another way gone. Another quick way out would be if it turned out that Jared was from this realm, which unfortunately he isn't... and so it only leaves the last way..."

Riven nodded once. "Which is...?"

"Well... it would be if I was... well... pregnant." She went down in tone and she only muttered the last word.

To her amazement, Riven didn't look offended. "Go on."

"But it only counts if it happened before I knew about the arrangement again. If it happened after, I'd still have to marry Jared, I'd just be labelled as a 'royal disgrace'."

"I see..."

"But an old friend of mine works at the health clinic- Selena- and she says that she can fake results for me, to say that I got pregnant the last night at Alfea."

Riven said 'Oh' and chuckled. "And so you want me to..."

Musa said 'Uh-huh' and nodded at the same time.

He chuckled again and said "Well I don't see why not... but Musa. Are you sure?"

"Riven honey. Would have I made you come to me and would I have told you this if I wasn't sure? And sides, even if I wasn't sure, it's still the only way out of this. And then... then I can... marry _you_."

Musa felt tears in her eyes and started to reach up to rub them away, but Riven stopped her by taking her hands into his. "Don't cry Musa," he said, "I hate it when you cry." She smiled at that and looked up to meet his eyes.

"Here goes nothing," she said, and reached to pull off his shirt.

* * *

_Woah! Finally! Please don't flame me for not updating in soooooo long. I hope you like it, and I'll put up the next chapter soon as i can. Promise. =]_

_Please rate & review. xxMazzy_


	6. Faking It Up

_Hello again! I guess by now you've all figured how unreliable I am for updates. Hopefully my 'gripping storyline' will be worth the wait! Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed or messaged me!_

* * *

"I can't believe I'm helping you with this, Musa," Selena told the blue-haired musical princess as she watched her lay down on the blue bed.

"Oh come on Selena," Musa said. "It's not like I forced you into it or anything."

"Well I didn't really have much of a choice, did I?" Selena fought back, but calmed down as she rolled up Musa's black T-shirt.

"Anyway," Musa went on, "Eventually I'm gonna become Queen of this realm, and I never forget those who help me."

"Oh really?"

"Uh-huh. I could get you enough money you would never have to work again."

"Maybe I want to work."

"Maybe, but I didn't say just because you have an uber massive house and a super fast and expensive car that you're not allowed to work if you want to."

'Hmph' was all Selena could say.

"Alright. Are you ready?" Selena asked, and Musa nodded. Selena put the stethoscope in her ears and proceeded to place the diaphragm on Musa's stomach. She saw her flinch as the cold metal met her skin.

"I thought those things were to listen to your heart," Musa pointed out, puzzled.

"You listened too hard in Earth studies," Selena said. "This is a special kind it can detect a second heart beat; a baby's heart beat. Assuming that you do happen to have a baby inside of you."

"Oh," Musa replied.

It had been three weeks since Musa had visited Selena, and let's just say her nights had been very busy. She was tired, but if she managed to pull this off it would all be worth it.

"Well, that's it." Selena said and took the stethoscope out of her ears.

"What? It's done already? So am I pregnant?"

"Well, yes. Three weeks actually. You got pregnant the night after you visited me."

Musa thought about all the pointless sex she had had with Riven the past weeks, and then decided that it hadn't been really worthless despite the fact it wasn't for a kid. The thing that was scaring her now was the fact that she was carrying a child, and had been for a while now.

"It'll take me about half an hour to get the results and adjust them, Musa. But have you may want to keep it in mind that your kid may be two weeks or so late."

"I gathered that," Musa said. "I'll just sit in the waiting room, if that's okay?"

"Sure," Selena said.

Musa went to sit in the waiting room. In the silent and empty room, her mind began to wander and worry. Had she really done the right thing? Had Selena been right after all? It was too late now. She wasn't going to have an abortion. She thought about how her Dad was going to react when she told him. When should she tell him? It was all so awfully confusing. She had only just thought about how embarrassing it would be to tell her friends, and how disgraceful it would be regarded by her people. She felt tears in her eyes, and head in her hands, she cried. All she had ever wanted was to do her father well, and it seemed that she always failed to do so. Musa was blaming herself, and even though she knew deep down that she shouldn't, she just couldn't help it. She wanted to hear her mother's voice. To hug her and to be comforted by her. And that is when she finally looked on the bright side of the situation.

She wasn't going to have to marry Jared. She could be with Riven. And hopefully she would have a little daughter, and she knew that she would name her after her mother; Matlin. But she wouldn't mind if she had a son. "It's going to be okay..." she promised herself. "Everything is going to be just fine."

"Do you know that talking to yourself is the first sign of madness?" Selena was standing in the doorway from her office into the waiting room. She was leaning against the frame with her arms crossed; a piece of paper clutched in one hand.

"You did it?" Musa asked.

"As you requested," Selena said, and handed the paper to Musa.

Musa scanned her eyes over the page. The date of the conception read 'July 28th'. The last night at Alfea.

"Thank you, Selena." Musa stood up and gave her old friend an awkward hug. When they parted, Selena was biting her lip. "Well... good luck," Selena grimaced.

"Thanks. I sure will need it," chuckled Musa.

"And I would appreciate it if you didn't mention me either," confessed Selena.

"Don't worry, I won't have reason to. And why would I even if I did?"

"Well, your Dad might be... very angry."

"Probably... oh well. Now there is nothing he can do about it. But I should be getting back... see you." With a smile, Musa said goodbye to Selena and left. She was in a good mood. Everything was going to be just fine.

* * *

Riven greeted Musa with a kiss. Well, a bit more than just a kiss actually. He loved that feeling every time his lips met her own warm, soft pair. To his disappointment, she pulled away quickly.

"Riven, it's done," she said. She looked a little worried.

"What is?" he asked, confused. Hopefully it was something to do with Jared's assassination.

Musa whacked her boyfriend over the head with the papers in her hand.

"Ow," he whined, and automatically lifted his hand to fix his hair. She always wondered just how much gel he went through a year to wear his hair up like that every day.

"You idiot, what have we been trying for these past... what? 3 weeks?"

Riven couldn't help it. He looked down to her perfectly flat stomach and scowled. She looked cross and folded her arms.

"So you're..."

"Pregnant. Yes." She answered with dignity.

"Wow."

"Uh-huh." Musa had dreaded the moment being tense like this.

"Your Dad's gonna hate me, isn't he?"

Musa hadn't thought about that. "Well... for a while I'm sure he will, but he'll come off it eventually."

"You don't sound so sure."

"That's 'cause I'm not."

"Fantastic," he said with sarcasm. "So when are we, like, going to tell people?"

"I don't know. I haven't a clue how we'll tell Bloom and everyone. Stella will probably be annoyed if she isn't the first to know." The thought of her eccentric friend made her laugh a little.

"Well, you better not keep her waiting," Riven nodded to the right, where their friends, lead by a linking Stella and Brandon were coming towards them.

"Hey Musa. Riven," Layla greeted.

"God, what have you two been up to? We hardly see you!" Stella complained.

"You know... just, stuff," Musa said.

"Ooo-er!" Layla exclaimed. "What sort of 'stuff'?" Layla waggled her eyebrows, and everyone giggled. Apart from Musa and Riven.

"Can we go somewhere more private?" Musa asked. Her friends looked puzzled, but obliged.

The 'private' place Musa lead them to was the enormous sitting room. She knew her Dad avoided this place as much as she could as it reminded him too much of her Mom, and the staff were only allowed in with permission.

"So, what's the big private news we had to walk a gazillion miles to hear?" Stella was impatient, and walking around the room flinging her arms around. Musa knew how much she loved gossip.

Musa didn't know how to begin. "Well... you see... you know how... well... you know that..."

"Get to the point Musa!" Stella said, getting more ticked off by the minute.

"You know... You... You know that I am supposedly engaged to Jared?"

Stella flung her arms in the air. "Well obviously!"

"We were finding it so difficult to think of a way to get out of it, but the truth is, I had a way out all along."

"Well, tell us already!" Musa was seriously enjoying annoying Stella.

"Well..." Stella's eyes were bulging. Brandon's attempts to calm her down were failing. Layla was badly stifling a laugh. Tecna and Timmy were looking disapprovingly at Stella. Flora looked worried and Helia appeared to be comforting her. Sky seemed to be attentive but Bloom kept glancing at Stella.

Riven went to whisper in Musa's ear. "Just say it."

Musa took a deep breath. "Come on! Come on!" Stella was like a kid in a toy store.

"Well... I'm... pregnant."

Everyone's jaws dropped. Stella was speechless.

* * *

_So there you have it! I hope you liked it! I will try my best to write the next chapter within the next month, but I'm not making any promises! Feel free to contact me, and all your feedback is appreciated! xxMazzy_


	7. Change Of Plan

_Wow, I actually managed to update kind of quickly! I am so proud of myself XD The usual from me: I hope you enjoy this chapter, and thank you so much to everybody who reviewed and those who messaged me!_

* * *

"What the fuck Musa? Pregnant?!"

Everybody turned to stare at the speaker. The words emitted from the mouth of Flora had been almost as shocking as Musa's baby news.

"What the hell, Flora? Did you just say 'fuck'?" Stella asked in amazement. She was pretty much dumbfounded.

Flora's cheeks had turned bright red and she rolled the sleeves of her baby pink jumper down to cover her hands- a sign of embarrassment.

"Some people we know have certainly being doing a lot of that recently!" Sky sniggered and joke-punched Brandon on the arm.

"Shut up Sky!" Bloom was clearly quite angry at her boyfriend. "This isn't funny!"

"I can't believe Flora said 'fuck'..." Stella went on.

"Oh come on? Is it against the law for Flo to swear?" Layla questioned Stella sceptically. "Musa, would you mind telling us how you being... pregnant... helps the situation at all?"

Musa hadn't thought properly- like most things to do with her 'plan'- about how her friends were going to react. She didn't like the way they had reacted, especially Flora. Most of them looked to be very ashamed of her, and Riven wasn't exactly helping. He was sat by her side, one arm around her waist; the other resting on the back of the couch and supporting his head. His face wore that sexy smirk she had fell in love with, but right now didn't appreciate at all.

"I don't think you've acted very logical, Musa," Timmy said matter-of-factly.

"Have you even thought about the consequences of bearing a child at your age?" Tecna wondered.

"It's not illegal! She is nineteen, you know!" Sky pointed out.

"Sky!" Bloom hissed.

"He has got a point Bloom..."

"Be quiet Stella! Don't you realise how much trouble Musa is going to be in?"

"I wouldn't get in trouble if I was pregnant... In fact I think _my_ Mom would be happy!"

"Well I haven't got a mom, have I?"

There was silence over Musa's statement. Of course, they all knew that Musa's mom died when she was only little, and Stella wasn't always the person to talk to if you were easily offended. No matter how much Muse tried to hide it, they all knew that she was a little over-sensitive. She had never really talked about her mom before, apart from when she told Layla about her. Yet here she was, openly admitting that her mom was dead. Nobody knew what to say; they just bit their lips and glanced up at Musa every so often. It was the first time that they had ever really had a silence like this before. Luckily, it didn't take too long for Musa to break it herself.

"In my realm, arranged marriages for royals have been a tradition for centuries. I thought that it fizzled out years ago, but apparently not. All the rules of The Harmonic Nebula are written down in a book: The Harmonic Royalty Code. Everything to do with arranged marriages and the rules about them is in that book. If I'm pregnant with another guy, I can't marry anyone else."

"So you got pregnant just to get out of marrying Jared?" Stella exclaimed. "You go Musa!"

"Of course I didn't..." Musa defended, and Bloom looked at her suspiciously. "I got pregnant before I even knew about Jared."

"What? You've been pregnant for two years?!"

"No! I mean before I knew about my...Well, the whole having to marry him thing, Stella."

"When did you... you know, get pregnant?" Layla asked, concerned for her best friend.

Musa hesitated a moment before answering. "The last night at Alfea."

Bloom looked confused and thoughtful. "But, when you guys came down during the party, you said you didn't do anything like that..."

At last, Riven spoke. "Did you never think that people might lie sometimes?"

"Yeah, but not my own friends to my face!" Bloom objected. It wasn't like her to get annoyed.

"Well did you really want them to tell you the truth?" Tecna asked.

Flora had come around from her earlier embarrassment and was now talking sense. At least someone was. "Musa, have you even thought about this? You're going to have a _child_. It's not something you can just jump into like that, and at such a young age too! It's unfair on them to grow up neglected because their parents were stupid and don't know how to look after them properly. It's the same with plants; if you don't look after..."

"Oh don't be such an old woman, Flo! Having a kid's amazing! When I have a kid she's going to be perfect and beautiful..."

Musa wasn't listening. She was too stuck on Flora's question. Had she really thought about this? The answer was no. How could she have been so stupid?

"... I bet Musa's fine with having a kid! It'll be great! I can give her fashion advice and..."

And what if Riven got scared as the fact dawned on him? What if he left her? What would she do then? She'd be left with a kid and no choice than to marry Jared...

"... when my daughter was born they could be best friends, little princesses..."

Her father would never forgive her. He'd constantly be telling her child- his grandchild- how stupid Musa had been and that they should never get caught in a situation like hers...

"Can't you just see it now, shnookums? Our little Celestia playing dress-up with Mommy's jewellery?" Brandon laughed and kissed his future wife on the head. He was obviously insecure about talking about having children just yet. It was amazing that Riven was so cool with it.

"So, I think that Musa will agree how amazing this really is, right?"

Musa knew that her calmness was quickly fading away. She was breaking down. What had she done?

"Right, Musa?" Stella was now staring at Musa, almost persuading her to agree.

"Stella, I'm not going to the store to buy a little pet for you. I'm having a fucking _child_!" She detached herself from Riven and got up swiftly with as much dignity as possible, and left the room. She felt everybody's eyes on her.

"Why," Stella stressed, "Do I always get the blame for these things?!"

* * *

Face buried in her pillow, Musa cried for what felt like the millionth time since she found out that she was engaged to Jared. She clutched at her stomach, feeling sick at the thought of a tiny living thing inside of her. She had never been squeamish, but this was all too much for her. It was like the feeling you get in a biology lesson on the menstrual cycle. You know everything about it and it doesn't bother you at all. It's a fact of life. It's even okay to talk about it with your friends; it's only natural. Yet you still can't help but feel sick and embarrassed when your professor drones on and on with the guys all sniggering around you.

Why hadn't she just talked to her dad about the whole thing? He was a good man- very honest and usually understanding. It might have taken a while to work him, but if she could have convinced him what she believed was best for herself really was the best, well, she was sure he would have listened. Why didn't she just try it before jumping into this awful situation? She might be smart, but she couldn't not admit that sometimes she was just darn right stupid.

Lifting her head from the pillow, she saw that it was damp from her tears. She sniffed as her stomach growled from hunger and thought about all the times she had been happy. All of the times she had been happy with Riven. She had never worried about anything; even the witches didn't bother her that much. They were just part of the adventure of Alfea. She thought back to her preteen years when she was looking forward to going to Alfea. She had everything planned out in her head. In reality, it had happened totally different, but she had never expected- or even wanted- to get pregnant right after graduation. There was a time when she had tutted at those teenage mothers, and now she was practically one herself. Perhaps they had faced difficult scenarios too, and nobody gave them a chance. What if it was the same for her? Would anybody even want her as the queen of their realm? It was unlikely. She would be kicked aside like an old tin can. Forgotten like a past celebrity. And the worst part? It was all her fault.

Suddenly somebody knocked on her bedroom door. Bloom's voice drifted through. "Musa, it's me. Can I come in?"

Musa sat up on her bed and wiped tears from her face before struggling to say 'okay' as calmly as she could.

Bloom came into the room alone and closed the door behind her, and came to sit with Musa on her bed. "Are you alright?"

"What do you think?" Musa said sarcastically.

"No, but it's nice to ask."

This made Musa smile a little. Bloom was truely a really good friend. She had always been loyal, and Musa actually appreciated having her beside her at that moment.

"You know Musa," Bloom began, "It's not as bad as you think."

Musa agreed, though not quite the way Bloom had meant it. "Yeah, I know. It's worse."

"Don't be like that," Bloom warned Musa.

"Don't be what? Truthful? I'm bloody _pregnant _Bloom. I've done something really stupid, and there isn't anything I can do about it!"

"Well most people would have done the same sort of thing in your position. I know I would have."

"Don't say that Bloom; I know you wouldn't. You're excellent at making descisions! Don't you remember in our first year when we saved Stella all thanks to you making good descisions?"

"Yeah, but I thought that I'd had good descision potion! I remember I put in a mandrake beet instead of a root. Tecna's face was so funny!"

They both laughed a little.

"But the point is Bloom, you made those descisions yourself, and they were good descisions! We saved Stella's life!" Musa complained.

"You say that like it's a good thing!" Bloom joked, and they both laughed again. "Seriously though. You two argue like an old married couple!"

"And if we hadn't saved her due to your good descisions, who would I argue with?" Once again, the pair of them both laughed.

"It's okay, I get your point. But honestly Musa. Everybody makes mistakes- it's part of life. We learn from our mistakes. Think about it, you must have learnt something important from this."

Musa thought about this- something she had only really just learnt to do. Well, she'd learnt that having a kid was way bigger than she had originally assumed, and she had also learnt that Flora actually did swear sometimes. But what use were those things? That was when it hit her.

"Oh my God, Bloom! I've learnt that I shouldn't just do or say the first thing that pops into my head! I have learnt how to think before I act! Bloom, I think I've learnt how to make good descisions, even if it did take something massive to teach me!"

Bloom smiled, happy that she had cheered her friend up a little. "Well there you have it, Muse. You can now make good descions!" Bloom hugged Musa.

"Really Bloom, I don't know what we would do without you!" Musa thanked her friend. "Where is everyone else?"

"They're still downstairs in that TV room with the cinema screen," Bloom explained. "No offence, but they're probably talking about you."

"I'd say almost definitely..." sighed Musa.

"Seriously, I better get back down there though. Otherwise they might come looking for me. I only told them I was going to the toilet,"- Bloom laughed- "So they'll probably start to worry if I'm gone too long. I'll give you some time to think thigns through and calm down a little, but you can come down now if you like."

"I think I'll stay up here a while. I don't really feel like facing everyone again just yet, I mean, I've still got telling my Dad to worry about, ya know?"

"Sure. Alright then, see you." Bloom left Musa's bedroom, closing the door gently behind her. Musa sighed, she really was glad to have Bloom as a friend. However, Bloom was barely gone a few minutes before Musa started to worry and stress again. Okay, maybe Bloom was right. Maybe Musa had learnt something good from this, but was it really worth it? She was going to have her own child in less than a year's time- she was almost still a kid herself. It was literally the scariest thing Musa could think of right now. It was huge, and no matter how many times she told herself '_I'm pregnant' _she still felt that she could never accept that idea. It was such a big thing, and it seemed that she had only gained something so small. She just couldn't remind herself the whole reason why she had done this. Why did something as small and inconvenient such as an arranged marriage matter now when she was bringing new life into the world? And she still had to tell Ho-Boe, her Dad, and she knew he would freak when he found out. Then again, if she didn't tell him anyway, the whole thing would have been for nothing, as she was only pregnant to get out of the arranged marriage to Jared and she had to tell her Dad to have him cancel it to get out of it. Musa groaned, and let her head fall into her hands, her elbows wresting on her crossed legs. _Why? Why? Why do these things always happen to me? _She thought to herself.

Musa worried herself and cried for another good half hour before someone else came and knocked on her bedroom door. This time, they didn't wait for a reply, just walked in. It was Riven. "Hey..." he greeted his distressed, blue-haired girlfriend awkwardly, barely looking at her as he closed the door and then lent against it. She said nothing in return, and didn't even look up.

"So... You okay?" With no reply yet again, Riven began to stress himself. He was easily annoyed, and there was nothing that annoyed him more than when Musa was in a bad mood. Except from maybe when Sky beat him at anything, but that didn't happen a lot. Or so he liked to think. He sat down on the bed next to Musa, who was know hugging her knees and rocking back and forth ever so slightly. "So..." he began.

"Why are you so happy about this?" Musa asked, seriously angry with Riven.

"What?" Riven asked, his anger vanishing as swiftly as it had came at the sudden surprise accusation. He hated it when Musa was angry, most especially with him.

"You know what I mean! I saw you down there, smirking away like you'd achieved something! Are you proud of yourself? Proud that you knocked me up, hmmm?"

"Musa, what are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm talking about! You are always so self centered! You think you're so darn irresistable, don't you? You think you can treat me like shit and I'll just come running back every time, no matter what you do to me!" Musa was crying again, this time from sheer humiliation rather than worry.

"Musa... I never..."

"Oh but you did! You always do! All I want is to have a nice relationship like my friends do, but..."

Musa shut her mouth as Riven caught her face in his hands and turned it towards his own. He stared into her perfect indigo eyes, hoping that this would assure her he was being honest with her. "Musa," he began, then closed and opened his mouth, glanced to the side and then fixed his stare back into her eyes again. "Musa, listen to me. You cannot believe how hard it is for me to say this, but, but it seems I just have to. Every day you think I'm putting you down, I'm actually trying to protect you. Protect you from me. I'm dangerous, Musa. You know I never knew either of my parents. You know how I grew up. I couldn't deal with emotions. I didn't trust anyone. I hated anyone that was happy. My whole life was training. Training for nothing. I dreaded graduation. I always thought I was going to end up on the streets again- I even tried to get on Codatorda's good side in hope that I would be allowed to stay at Red Fountain once I'd learnt everything. That was before I met you... before I got to be with you. You brought out the good side in me, and I would never want anything bad to happen to you- I don't think I could bare it, no, I know I couldn't bare it. And maybe I don't say this as often as I should, but really Musa, I _do_ love you."

Musa opened her mouth to object, but didn't get the chance as Riven went in to kiss her. Her whole body was on tingling, her lips were on fire. Her heart was racing. It was the same feeling she got everytime she kissed Riven- it was so much more than just a kiss. So that's what it felt like, anyway. He licked her lips with the tip of his tongue, but she wasn't going to allow him access. There were far more important matters to be dealt with. She pulled herself away from him, which took quite a considerable amount of force on her behalf. She was quite a tall girl, but Riven was even taller than her, and so much wider and more muscular... But no. She wasn't going to let herself start thinking about his hard and perfect chest underneath that shirt...

Riven looked dissapointed and slightly offended, but he quickly hid it with his favorite poker face. "Riven, maybe you are telling the truth, maybe you do love me. But it isn't enough. I need something more. I need an _apology _for all of those times you hurt me."

Musa knew that Riven didn't like losing, and he considered apologies a form of losing. Therefore, she wasn't too angry that he looked as if was in pain when she said that. She found his gaze fixed into her eyes again.

"Musa... I am. So, so sorry." Musa felt another salty tear trickle down her cheek, but it wasn't from dismay. It was a tear of happiness. Riven had apologised, and she just knew that he really did mean it.

"Oh Riven..." she whispered, and collapsed into him, crying. He held her in his arms, and she could swear she heard him stifle his own little sobs. But she didn't dare mention it. For that moment in time, Musa forgot that she was pregnant. They must have sat for ten minutes at least, but unfortunately big issues don't stay out of your mind for long.

"Riven...?" Musa said.

"Yes Musa?" he replied.

"Promise me you'll never leave me."

He lifted her away from him to look into her eyes. "What makes you think I would leave you?" he questioned.

"Just... Just promise me."

Riven kissed Musa softly on the lips and then whispered 'I promise' in her ear.

* * *

Musa awoke on top of Riven the next morning, clutching one of his hands. He was still fast asleep.

"Oh, crap," Musa muttered, realising that she still had to tell her father about her pregnancy. And that made her start to worry again. Holy cow- she was pregnant. The fact had almost killed her already and still it kept on coming back to stab her again. How in the realms was she going to explain to her Dad that she was pregnant? And then tell him how it happened at Alfea when getting pregnant whilst at Alfea was something that was really frowned upon? She had butterflies in her stomach from nervousness, and it was only 6AM. She couldn't go back to sleep with this on her mind, so quietly she undressed and pulled some Adidas track pants and a red vest top on. She curled her hair with a quick spell that Stella had taught her and kept her bangs on her face. She thought this would be good to hide her expressions from her father when she got round to telling him.

She wanted to look presentable, so she applied some light mineral foundation to cover any flaws and put on some kohl eyeliner and volumising mascara. This makeup would make Stella proud. Ish. She did some deep breathing after her makeup as an attempt to calm herself down, but the butterflies would not flutter away and Musa was feeling sicker and sicker by the minute. She just could not believe her own actions. It was alright when she was occupied in conversation or something time consuming, but when she was doing nothing she couldn't help but worry. This was something inceredibly serious, and Musa wasn't ready for it. When she thought about it, her friends had acted pretty cooly- considering it was something that actually was going to affect them all and change almost completely Musa's life. That made her think about how over the next few years her time would be taken up by her child: she would have to teach it to talk and walk, decent manners (though she was sure that Tune, her pixie, would be happy to help with that), how to be good, the dangers of the magical world and of course help them to control their powers; assuming it was a girl. Musa didn't know why, but she just felt that she was going to have a girl. She was sure of it.

Sitting down on the stool in front of her vanity table, Musa stared at her reflection in the mirror. She looked paler than usual, and she could see the pure fear in her eyes. Today, she was going to tell her Dad. It had to be done now, there wasn't anything left to do. Looking at her worried face, Musa became angry at herself. "Oh for God's sake, Musa!" she told herself, "You've faced far worse than this! The witches, Baltor, Darkar... the loss of your Mom..." She slammed her fist down on her dressing table; her cosmetics shook somewhat violently and a lot of them fell over. "You're not going to let this ruin your life!"

Riven stirred. Musa saw his reflection sit up and rub it's eyes in the mirror. His weary eyes looked over to Musa sat on the stool and their eyes met in reflection. "Morning," Musa said.

"Good morning," he replied with a yawn, and Musa smiled at him via the mirror.

"So, what happens next?" Riven asked. "In your 'plan', I mean."

"Well I've... _We've_ got to tell my Dad, so..."

"Are you sure it's such a good idea for me to be there when you tell him?" Riven didn't sound happy.

"What, you want me to tell him by myself?" Musa complained.

"Well no, I just think that it would be better if I wasn't there for him to get angry at."

Musa didn't like the thought of going to her Dad alone, but she hated to admit that Riven was right. As soon as Musa told her Dad that it was Riven who got her pregnant, there was no doubt that her Dad would start on Riven if he was right in front of them. Best to keep him out the way until (and if) her Dad calmed down.

Musa sighed. "Okay, you're right, but I hope that you can understand how difficult this is for me. It's not something I do every day-"

"Musa, I will go with you if you really want, I just don't think that it's a very good idea," Riven explained. "But you might want to go and tell your Dad before everyone else gets up to hear it."

Agreeing with Riven, Musa got up, and with an awkward glance back at her boyfriend, left the room. And then the fear overwhelmed her again. Slamming herself against the wall, a million escape plans rushed through her mind almost at once; none of much use. She had to tell her Dad. Musa took a deep breath and set off down one of the many corridors of the palace. On her way, she bumped into Annie.

"Alright Miss?" Annie said in her classic old English accent that Musa found quite amusing. "Actually," Annie went on, "You look a little pale. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine," Musa lied.

"That's good... Anyway, you're probably wondering what I'm doing this part of the palace! I've been sent 'cause your Dad's looking for you. He wants you to go to see him in his study room." Annie walked off.

This made Musa even more panicked. Her Dad wanted to see her- what could he possibly want? She had only ever been to his study room once. That was after one time when she had ran away before she went to Alfea. There were a lot of books and unused musical instruments in there, but that was all she could remember. If her Dad wanted to see her in there, it probably wasn't for a good reason. Sadly she knew that her Dad would only be angrier if she kept him waiting, so she hurried down a staircase and headed to her Dad's study room.

Musa hesitated again. She had been outside the study room for at least five minutes. She'd paced around and had attempted to knock several times, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She was too afraid of her Dad's reaction. Raising her hand to try and knock once more, she got a shock as the door opened in front of her to reveal her Dad. He looked happy to see her.

"Ahh, Musa. Nice to see you, we haven't really being talking a lot recently. Please, come in and sit down." Musa was amazed at how formal and nice her Dad was behaving. She didn't want to argue, so she went in and sat down in a red arm chair beside an end table with a strange looking trumpet placed on top of it. Her Dad closed the study room doors and sat on a loveseat in front of the chair Musa was sitting in.

"Dad-" she started, but her Dad waved his hand to tell her to be quiet.

"Listen Musa. I know that I havn't always been the best Dad that maybe I should have been, but I really do have your best interests at heart. I just want you to be happy."

Musa listened to what her Dad was saying; she was really confused. What was her Dad talking about?

"And seeing your reaction at your princess ball, I realised that I had made a really big mistake. Musa, I know you don't want to marry yet, and I don't think you're ready. So I've called it off. You don't have to marry Jared."

Musa could not believe this. "What...?" she gasped.

"You, don't have to marry Jared," her Dad beamed.

"Yeah... I heard but... what? Dad, how could you do this?!"

"What? I thought you would be happy, Musa!"

"Dad?! Why the hell didn't you tell me this before?!" she was hysterical, and she knew she was behaving rashly, but she felt her eyes filling with tears. Here she was; pregnant. And for no reason at all.

"Musa? What in the realms is wrong? I thought you didn't want to marry Jared!"

"I... I don't!" she wailed.

"Then what the hell's the matter?" Her Dad seemed more irritated than concerned.

"Dad, of course I didn't want to marry _him_! So did you really expect me to just let it happen?! Of course I didn't! Dad, how could you do this?" It was unfair, but Musa was blaming her father entirely.

"Musa, what is the problem? I really don't understand..."

"I'm fucking pregnant, Dad!" she yelled. She got up as quickly as she could and fled out the room.

"Now you wait here one minute young lady!" her Dad called after her. He was now angry.

But Musa had already vanished away into the maze of the palace.

"What the hell!? How can she be... pregnant?" Ho-Boe was freaking out. "Pregnant?!"

* * *

_Wow, that was a long chapter! I can't believe I wrote it in just a couple of days! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and stay tuned for the next chapter! Please review, I really do appreciate feedback. xxMazzy_


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